The Song of a Violin
by Luc16
Summary: This story is about Albus Severus Potter and the girl who played the violin. The melody stays with Albus and it reminds him of her warm brown eyes. Will they meet again? (First h.p. fanfic! please review and give me feedback! I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters! Thanx!) :)
1. Chapter 1

Albus shivered. He pulled his coat tighter around him and adjusted his scarf. He walked down Hogsmeade looking at all the Christmas decorations. There were splashes of green and red, flashes of Christmas lights, and the smell of peppermint. It was two days before Christmas and the Potter family was making their annual visit for presents. They all split off into different directions but were strictly told not to leave Hogsmeade. They had their coins which would beep if they left the little wizard town. They were also a way of communication for the family of five. The coins had been adapted from the DA, Dumbledore's Army, coins from the Wizard War. Albus shoved his hands into his pockets as another gust of wind blew past. He'd already bought or made his presents ahead of time, like he did every year. The trip was mostly for James and Albus's dad, Harry. James was a procrastinator and Harry was usually too busy with missions to stop for Christmas shopping. Albus had already stopped in the Three Broomsticks and gotten a butterbeer. Now he wished he'd asked for a peppermint hot chocolate to go. It was freezing. But Albus liked this weather. It was crisp and cold but Albus loved the feeling of happiness Christmas brought. The exchange of presents, the company of family, and, of course, the food.

Albus looked around and scowled, annoyed. His glasses had fogged up again. Whenever he was facing the wind and breathed out his mouth, the hot air would be pushed back into his face and fogg up his glasses. He wished his mother or Aunt Hermione were here to put a spell on his glasses so that would stop. Of course, he knew the spell but he was ten so therefore underage and not allowed to use magic. However, that didn't stop him from reading all of his brother's Hogwarts books. He'd read them all at least twice. His dad didn't understand where he got his love of reading because it certainly wasn't from him. His mother read occasionally, but not as devoutly as Albus. Albus loved the books. The information was right at your fingertips, you just had to read it. No test or trial, just read. Albus loved the fact that he knew more than his brother did, even though his brother teased him to no end about being a book worm and biggest-nerd-of-the-wizarding-world. He absolutely cherished the moments when he corrected his dad or mum. His dad got this surprised, proud sort of expression and mum just out right beamed. However, on occasion they got annoyed because he was only ten and he knew more than the-boy-who-lived and his wife. Lily would make him recite love stories and poems to her when Albus was gone away at school. She'd also politely sit and listen to him rant about a new idea he had even though she was bored out of her mind.

Albus sighed and turned his back to the wind. He was facing a small fountain that water gurgled out of. Albus was amazed it hadn't frozen yet. He was gazing at the sparkling water when a figure stepped into his vision. It was a girl that looked about Albus' age and she was holding a violin that was too big for her. She had frizzy blond hair that seemed to shine in the moonlight and warm chocolate brown eyes. She wore baggy pants and a sweatshirt that was three sizes too large. She had thin fingerless gloves and a pair of holey converse on. She raised the violin to her chin, adjusting it accordingly, and took a deep breath. The sound that followed was breathtaking. Albus didn't know what song it was but it sounded like it had a life of its own. To him, it sounded like a moonlit night when two friends meet for the first time. As the song continued it felt like the two friends grew older and louder with the music. It was a soft, elegant, and powerful song. Albus stood in the middle of the street enchanted. It sung of a warm fire, family gathered around, and a love between the two friends. It also sung of snow. And at that moment, snow began to softly fall. The snowflakes seemed to dance with the music, swirling around the girl and the violin. The girl was smiling softly with her eyes closed, like she was remembering a sweet memory. The song ended in a long, elegant, haunting note. Albus knew he should clap or do something, but all he could do was stare in amazement at the girl.

"Hey! You there! Get down from there!" A gruff voice shouted. Albus jumped at the sound and turned to look at the source of the voice. A big burly man shuffled out of one of the shops and shouted, "We don't want your kind around here! Go away!" Albus turned back to the fountain, confused. The girl was gone. He ran up to the fountain and circled it several times. The man seemed just as confused as Albus and went back inside. Albus looked around once more and saw a beanie lying on the ground. He concluded it must be the girl's but she was nowhere to be found. He sat the hat down on the fountain's edge and turned to walk away. He felt compelled to give something to the girl for her enchanting music. He placed all of his money that was supposed to be for Christmas presents into the hat. He smiled, satisfied with his good deed. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw movement. His head whipped in the direction of the disturbance and he stared into the eyes of a golden retriever. It had warm chocolate eyes that seemed really familiar. The dog looked cold, dirty, and skinny. Mud was caked around it's paws and into some of its fur. But those eyes, where had he seen them before? It was on the tip of his tongue when he felt something in his pocket grow warm. He pulled out the coin and read: We're done. Meet at the Three Broomsticks. Albus sighed and looked back at the dog. It was still staring at him with its head tilted to the side in a question.

"Merry Christmas," Albus said and waved to the dog. He started walking back to the Three Broomsticks. He heard a bark behind him and he turned to see the dog sitting by the fountain wagging its tail. Albus sighed and waved goodbye. That was the beginning of Albus Severus Potter's many Merry Christmas's.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys! So i hoped you liked the first part of this! Please let me know what you think! I know that i sometimes have a problem with first person/second person writing. I usually write in the first person but i decided to change it this time. So, if you find that i mixed them up, please let me know! Thank you and Enjoy! :) .**

Albus was boarding the train at platform 9 ¾ marveling at what his dad had told him. He could choose which house he wanted to be in? That changed everything! But, what if he chose wrong?

"Albus, stop walking around with your thinking look!" exclaimed Rose. Albus looked at his cousin and tried to smile, but he was just so worried.

"Ooh, look! This one's free!" Rose pushed open the door and plopped down on the seat.

"They're so comfy! Can you believe we're going to Hogwarts this year! It's gonna be sooooo much fun!" squealed Rose. Albus couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm. Rose always helped to cheer him up. She was his favorite cousin. They did and shared almost everything together. They both loved to read and had read the books more than once. (Albus prided himself in reading them more than she had but nonetheless, at least she'd read them.). Albus and Rose started talking about the different houses again when they heard a knock at the door. A slender boy with blonde hair stood in the doorway. He wore a black high collar shirt and black khakis. His eyes were a silver color and kept darting from Albus to Rose. Rose and Albus looked at each other, knowing who this was.

"C-can I join you?" the boy stuttered. Rose hesitated, looking at Albus. Albus, deciding to ignore his Uncle Ron's comments about the boy, said, "Yeah, have a seat." The boy smiled, relieved.

"Thanks," he put his trunk overhead and sat next to Albus.

"I'm Albus Potter and this is my cousin Rose Weasley," Albus introduced them.

"I'm Scorpious Malfoy," Scorpious replied, shaking their hands.

"So, which house do you want to be in?" Rose asked. Scorpius and Rose struck up a debate about the houses again, so Albus looked out the window. The train jolted to a start and the three looked at each other excitedly. Suddenly, Albus heard a voice yelling for the train to wait. He looked out the window and saw a girl running up ahead, trying to catch the train. She had wild, curly blonde hair that was escaping its ponytail. A backpack jumped back and forth on her back as she ran to catch the train.

"Why doesn't the train stop?" Rose asked peering out the window.

"The train leaves at exactly the same time every year. Once it starts it doesn't stop," Scorpious explained. The girl kept having to weave between people and trunks. She couldn't seem to catch up. Albus opened the window and leaned out.

"Here! Give me your hand!" Albus shouted. The girl turned to look at him and then made a beeline towards the window. Albus stuck his hand out and the girl shoved her bag into his hands. He threw it into the compartment, then stuck his hand back out. She'd fallen behind a little bit. She was running out of steam.

"Come on! Grab on!" Albus yelled. She pumped her legs faster and grabbed Albus' hand. Albus felt himself being pulled out of the train. Rose yelped and hung onto his waist.

"Al this is crazy!" Rose wailed, trying to pull him back in. He gripped the girl's hand harder and tried to pull her in. Suddenly, Albus heard screams and looked up. The train was gaining speed and the tunnel was getting closer. Really fast. The girl had noticed it too and was trying to run faster. Albus heard people shouting "Let go!" and "Somebody stop the train!" but the train just picked up speed. He thought he saw his parents trying to weave through the crowd towards him but there were too many people. He looked back at the girl and saw fear. He looked at the approaching wall and knew that if he let go, the girl was still going to crash into the wall.

"I'm not letting go! I know what to do, but you have to trust me!" Albus shouted. The girl looked into his eyes and nodded. Albus stuck hi other hand out, eliciting another wail from Rose, and grabbed the girl's hand. He gripped the girl's forearm with his right hand and grabbed onto her shirt with the other. The girl seemed to understand what he was doing and held onto his forearm tight. Albus heard his father scream, "ALBUS!" At the last minute, Albus pulled on the girl's arm with all his might and she jumped off the platform. She grabbed onto the windowsill with her free hand and flattened herself against the train just as they entered the tunnel. Albus held onto the girl for dear life, trying to bring her as close to him as possible. Moments later, it felt like hours, they were out of the tunnel and racing down the track in the open air. Albus opened his eyes, he hadn't realized he's closed him, and pulled the girl into the compartment. They tumbled inside, Albus landing on Rose and the girl landing on Albus.

"A-are you al-" Albus panted, but his words were choked off as he looked at the girl's eyes. They were a warm, chocolate brown with little gold specks in them. Where had he seen those eyes before? The memory gnawed at him but he couldn't place those eyes. She stared back, seeming to recognize him too.

"Al! What were you thinking!?" Rose screeched. The girl hurridly got off Albus and Albus helped Rose up. She hit him.

"Do you know what could have happened?" Rose said while hitting him.

"I'm sorry Rose! I just wanted to help!" Albus pleaded. Rose threw her hands into the air and sighed dramatically.

"Hey, where's Scorpious?" Albus asked. Rose sat heavily on the seat and said, "He went to the conductor to see if he could stop the train." Albus nodded understanding and turned towards the girl. The girl had her backpack in her hand and was watching Albus and Rose's exchange.

"Hi, I'm Albus Potter," he stuck out his hand. She looked at it warily then shook it.

"I'm Rhyleigh," she said in a quiet voice, "Thanks for helping me." Albus smiled, "No problem." Suddenly, Scorpious rushed in breathing heavily.

"Are they-were they-oh hey," he panted. An adult was behind him, Albus assumed he was the conductor or co-conductor. He gave them all a big long lecture, wagging his finger at them like that was going to drive the point home further. They all nodded their head and promised never to do something like that again. The conductor eventually left but was shortly replaced by James, Albus' older brother.

"Albus! What was that about? Bloody hell! Are you that stupid to stick your hand out the window of a moving train?" Albus was getting tired of the lectures.

"I was just trying to help!" Albus said defensively.

"There are other ways to help besides being a complete and utter idiot!" James yelled. Albus opened his mouth to retort but suddenly the coin in his pocket buzzed. James, Rose, and Albus all took out their coins and read: Is Albus alright? What happened to the girl?

"Look, you even scared mum and dad!" James angrily got out his wand and tapped the coin. He walked away scowling, writing a message back to their parents. Albus slumped against the seat, crossing his arms.

"Don't listen to James. He's being a jerk," Rose said comfortingly.

"I'm sorry I got you in trouble," Rhyleigh apologized. She sat across from Albus, holding her backpack possessively. She had a dark grey sweatshirt on, jeans, and a pair of converse. She had a smudge of dirt on her cheek and her hands weren't the cleanest. Her eyes were so captivating that Albus found himself staring at them. She shook his head quickly and said, "No, don't worry! I'm just glad you got on the train." He smiled and she smiled shyly back. Her smile was cute.

"Well that little act just proves you'll be put in Gryffindor!" Rose announced. Rhyleigh looked at her confused.

"Gryffindor?" she asked, confused. The three of us all looked at her surprised and then, assuming she was muggleborn, jumped into explaining the different houses. Rhyleigh listened patiently and seemed to absorb the information. Albus couldn't help but come back to her chocolate brown eyes. He knew he'd seen them before, but where? Albus pushed the thought away as visions of thestrals and house ghosts filled their conversation.


	3. Chapter 3

The rest of the train ride to Hogwarts was uneventful and even peaceful. Albus, Rose, and Scorpious went into detailed descriptions of Hogwarts, gesturing with their hands and using each other as props. Several times the small group was reduced to laughing fits and the occasional disciplinary slap from Rose.

"Well it's about time to put our robes on don't you think?" Rose asked. The boys agreed and reached for their trunks.

"Robes? Like bath robes?" Rhyleigh asked quietly.

"No, silly! Our wizard robes! Well it would be our witch's robes actually," Rose replied. Rhyleigh looked panicked and said quietly, "I don't have any robes." Albus stopped getting his robe out.

"Didn't you buy one when you went school shopping?" Albus questioned. Rhyleigh shook her head and lowered her eyes.

"Rhyleigh, how did you get all of your books and clothes in that backpack?"Albus asked. Rhyleigh stared at the floor and fidgeted nervously.

"Did you get anything for school?" Albus asked quietly. Rhyleigh shook her head and her eyes became watery.

"But-didn't you get the letter?" Rose asked, bewildered. Rhyleigh nodded and pulled a crumpled letter from her backpack.

"I knew I needed stuff but I couldn't afford it. I was hoping to share with someone…or something," Rhyleigh practically whispered. Something was strange to Albus. She couldn't afford school supplies? What about her parents?

"You couldn't afford it? Why didn't your parents help you?" Albus asked. Rhyleigh seemed to flinch but replied, "That's what I meant. My parents couldn't afford it." She looked at Albus quickly then averted her eyes. There was silence in the compartment.

"Well I'm sure the Headmistress can help," Rose said cheerily. Rhyleigh attempted a weak smile and nodded. Albus and Scorpious went and changed their robes and Rose left when they came back. There was an awkwardness hanging in the air and finally Albus couldn't take it anymore.

"Have I met you before?" Albus blurted. Rhyleigh looked up with a shocked, panicked looked on her face.

"N-no I never met you until today," Rhyleigh stammered. She looked at the floor and anywhere but at Albus' face. That was a clear sign that she did know Albus but wished she didn't. Albus wondered what he'd ever done to make her reject him so fervently. He was rarely outright mean to someone although he could snap when he was interrupted. Maybe something like that had happened. At that moment, Rose came in and sat next to Rhyleigh, making her jump.

"I've always wondered what it would be like to have curly hair. So, what's it like?" Rose asked eagerly. Rhyleigh looked taken aback but replied, "Uncontrollable?" Rose laughed and Rhyleigh cracked a smile. Albus got the feeling that Rhyleigh hadn't interacted with people very much and if so without talking a lot. Rose continued to ask questions and Rhyleigh answered with as little words as possible. Most people would think she didn't want to be talked to but not Albus. He could see she just wasn't used to talking with other people. Rose would've kept talking even if people didn't want to talk to her. She didn't pick up on those signals so you had to be extremely blunt with her. Albus thought she got that from her father. Albus turned to Scorpious and sparked a conversation about quidditch. When they all realized that Rhyleigh didn't know what that was either, they jumped back into explaining the wizarding world. As they got off the train everyone was speechless, even Rose.

"It's more beautiful than I expected," Rose breathed. Everybody nodded in agreement.

"Well! Look what we 'ave 'ere!" a booming voice said. Rhyleigh flinched and whipped her head around to look at the half-giant behind her.

"Hagrid!" Rose and Albus shouted. They were swept into a bear hug that nearly knocked the breath out of them.

"It's so good to see ya! Who are your friends? Oh I know you! You must be Draco's boy! I know a Malfoy when I see one," Hagrid boomed. Scorpious nodded nervously.

"This is Rhyleigh," Albus gestured to Rhyleigh. Hagrid looked surprised and said, "Really? Oh I been waitin for ya. I was to take you to the Castle as soon as I saw you. So come with me." Rhyleigh looked at Albus, Rose, and Scorpious fearfully.

"Don't worry, Hagrid's a good friend," Albus smiled. Rhyleigh didn't look convinced but followed Hagrid.

"What was that about?" Rose asked. Albus shrugged his shoulders and his reply was caught off as they were ushered onto the boats. The Castle was pure magic. Rose was speechless, again, as was every other first year. They walked into a hall with big arches, sloping ceilings, and a grand staircase. Albus' dad had described the Castle perfectly and Albus smiled in anticipation. This was going to be his home for half the year.

"Hey here comes Rhyleigh," Rose pointed towards their right and sure enough, Rhyleigh was hurrying towards them in new robes.

"I guess the Headmistress did help her out," Scorpious commented. Rhyleigh looked around, spotted them, looked around again, then headed towards them.

"You just made it back in time! We're going to be sorted!" Rose squealed. Rhyleigh smiled and stood next to Rose.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, Welcome to Hogwarts! This will become your home for the next few months so get comfortable!" announced a tall, bearded man. He had long brown hair, fierce green eyes, and a scar running from his eye to his chin. He had on the black robes that were frayed at the edges and an earring. The earring hooked on to the top of his ear and had a chain running to his earlobe where there was a blood red diamond stud.

"You are about to enter the Great Hall where you will be sorted into your respected houses. No house is more worthy than the other. Remember that," Albus gulped involuntarily. Suddenly his fears came crashing down on him like a wave. He took a deep breath and reminded himself that he could choose.

"Please be on your best behavior," the man ended, "Follow me." He turned and the great doors opened. Voices came rushing to meet them as they walked into the Hall. Each table had a house flag above them declaring who they were. Albus looked around in wonder until he spotted the single stool and sorting hat. Albus had to keep repeating his dad's words to keep from sweating with nerves. Rose noticed his discomfort and whispered, "Everything's going to be fine. You'll be in Gryffindor." The tall man turned around and explained what was going to happen. He began to read off the names and each person got sorted met with a round of applause.

"Rose Weasley," the man announced. Rose smiled back at Albus and walked up to the stool.

"GRYFFINDOR!" the sorting hat shouted. A roar came up from the Gryffindor table. Albus twirled his thumbs nervously.

"Scorpious Malfoy," was announced next. Scorpious sat on the stool and the hat yelled, "SLYTHERIN!" The Slytherin table cheered.

"Albus Potter!" Albus' hear raced as he walked up to the stool. A hush settled on the hall as he sat on the stool. _Hmmm…another Potter, eh?_ a voice said in his head. Albus froze._I remember your father, he was a difficult one._ Albus remembered his father's words and thought, _not Slytherin_. _Not Slytherin? Just like your father._ Albus squeezed his eyes shut chanting in his head, _not Slytherin, please not Slytherin. __Hmmmm adamant aren't you? However, you have something that your father didn't therefore it's going to be…_

"SLYTHERIN!" the hat shouted. Albus sat stunned. The hall was silent and then the Slythering table erupted in cheers. Albus somehow found his legs and walked over to the Slytherin table. He sat next to Scorpious who gave him a relieved smile. Albus tried to respond but his face wouldn't work properly. He wasn't aware of much after that except that Rhyleigh came and sat down next to him. He vaguely remembered his brother and Rose trying to talk to him and walking to the Slytherin common room. He got a room with Scorpious and a boy named Hilton. That night, Albus didn't sleep much and instead, stared at the green canopy above his bed.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning, Albus had come to a decision. He'd stayed up most of the night trying to figure out why he'd been sorted into Slytherin and had come up with nothing. He decided to accept the fact that this was his house, that was until he could figure out the reason why. Albus hated not knowing the answer to a problem. It would consume him until he figured it out. Along with that decision, he decided to make the best out of his time here and looked forward to the classes. He wanted to test his knowledge and learn new spells. He was finally able to use magic because he was at school. That thought made him smile. A noise from his left, made Albus snap back to reality. Scorpious began to wake up and sat up blear eyed.

"Morning," he mumbled.

"Good morning," Albus answered. Scorpious examined Albus and said, "You look better than you did last night." Albus nodded and said, "Sorry about that. I was just a little shocked." Scorpious nodded understanding and slowly got out of bed.

"I'm heading down to breakfast, are you coming?" Albus asked. Scorpious grunted in agreement and began to get changed. Albus made his way to the common room. The room was cast in a slightly green glow and shadows danced on the walls. It was a circular room with high ceilings and no windows. Albus breathed in and could smell the faint smell of a lake. He remembered from his books that the Slytherin common room was in a dungeon under the lake. The walls were all stone and the green light made them look silver instead of grey. The fireplace had green fire instead of red and Albus wondered if all the fires had the house colors. The furniture in the common room was elegant and majestic. Every decoration was green, silver, or black. Snakes decorated the arches and tapestries. It gave the feel of a very wealthy, very arrogant community. Albus liked it. As soon as he thought that he felt guilty. He didn't want to like arrogance but this place, it felt right.

"It's nicer than you think," a small voice said. Albus turned and saw Rhyleigh coming down the stairs. She wore her school robes with her converse and you could see she'd tried to tame her hair. It was rebelling against her hair band.

"Are you feeling better?" she asked. Albus nodded, "I was just a little shell shocked is all. Did you sleep well?"

"Better than I've slept in years," Rhyleigh smiled. She had a shy smile, like she was wary of everything and everyone around her.

"Alright, let's go get something to eat. I'm starving!" Scorpious announced, coming down the stairs, "Oh, Rhyleigh. Are you coming with us?"

"Can I?" Rhyleigh asked.

"Of course!" Albus replied. They walked out of the common room, Scorpious leading the way since Albus hadn't really been paying attention.

"So what classes do you have?" Albus asked.

"I have potions first, you?" Scorpious answered. Albus smiled, "Same! What about you Rhyleigh?" Rhyleigh shuffled through her robes and brought out a piece of paper.

"This is my paper," she said. She looked nervous but a little relieved too. Albus took the paper and read, "Potions first! Oh and you have the same schedule as us! You'll be joining us then!" Rhyleigh smiled and took the paper back. Now Albus remembered both of his problems. How did he know Rhyleigh and why was he put in Slytherin? The questions consumed him until a familiar voice shouted, "Al!" Albus turned and was assaulted with a hug from Rose.

"Oh it's so good to see you! I was so worried last night when you got sorted! You looked so white and you weren't responding like you normally would! And you didn't eat one single bite of the delicious feast! Oh my gosh, next time you have to try the little apple pies! They were to die for! Oh but anyways, are you alright?" Rose rambled. Albus readjusted his glasses and laughed, "Yes, I'm fine! Thanks for the suggestion. I'll definitely try it tonight." Rose let go of Albus and assaulted Rhyleigh with a hug.

"So Al, Slytherin eh?" a taunting voice said. Albus sighed internally and turned towards his brother.

"Yes James, Slytherin," Albus didn't know if his brother had come to tease him or see if he was alright. Albus' mother always said that James' teasing was just how he showed his love but Albus was getting tired of James' "love."

"Well, don't start speaking parseltongue just because you're in Slytherin," James joked. Albus opened his mouth to retort but James was already joining his friends. Some love that is, Albus thought. Albus, Scorpious, Rhyleigh, and Rose walked into the Great Hall together and Rose went off towards the Gryffindor table. Albus, Scorpious, and Rhyleigh sat down together and dived into the food. Rose had been right, the food was delicious. There were muffins, pancakes, sausages, bacon, basically anything you could want. Albus looked over at Rhyleigh and saw her with mounds of food on her plate.

"Wow, Rhyleigh you eat a lot," Scorpious said with food in his mouth. Rhyleigh blushed and mumbled a sorry. Albus hit Scorpious on the arm and gave him a look.

"It's nothing to be sorry about. We're all hungry," Albus reassured her. Rhyleigh nodded and Scorpious chimed in, "Yeah, I didn't mean to offend you. I just never a saw a girl eat that much." Albus wanted to smack Scorpious again. Some people were just oblivious to what they said. After they were full they headed off to potions class. The room reminded Albus of the Slytherin common room. It was a dark room with a green tint. Potions lined the shelves on one wall and ingredients lined the other wall. A short round man stood in the center of the room. His robe stretched around him and his white beard touched his sternum.

"Hello class! I am professor Slughorn, your potions master," the man introduced himself. He jumped into what they would learn and discover and Albus listened attentively. He raised his hand for each question and got every single one right. Professor Slughorn praised him and rewarded him with points. All of his classes continued like this. Albus would raise his hand, answer the question, and get every question right. By the end of the day, Scorpious whistled in admiration.

"You know your stuff! How do you do it? I could barely read the books but my mum forced me to," Scorpious commented. Albus shrugged and said, "I like to read. I've read my books I don't know how many times and I've read James' books at least twice."

"Well, I know where I'm going for my essays," Scorpious laughed. Albus smiled. He liked being recognized for his knowledge. However, his excitement at knowing everything was gone by the end of the week. Every day, all of his classes were the same. He'd always answer the questions and never learned anything new. The lessons weren't new and there was nothing exciting about relearning what you already knew. Albus visited the library and began checking out books that looked interesting. He'd read in class and at times he'd ignore the teachers when they asked him what he was doing. Of course, he didn't mean to do this but he just got so focused on a book or problem that he tuned everyone else out. The teachers eventually banned him from reading in class which he found ironic because he was supposed to be learning in class and the only way he did that was by reading. But Albus wasn't the only one who didn't seem to enjoy the classes. Rhyleigh looked like she was on the breaking point. She would listen to the lessons but never take notes and when asked to go to a certain page she usually went to the wrong one. She was always nervous and tried to look as small as possible. Two weeks after the start of school, the teacher asked her to stay after class for a few minutes. She looked terrified as she waited for everyone else to leave.

"Do you know why Rhyleigh was asked to stay after?" Albus asked Scorpious as they left the classroom.

"I overheard one of the teachers say she doesn't do her homework for any of her classes. Doesn't she know that she won't pass school if she doesn't do her homework?" Scorpious whispered. Albus shook his head confused. Scorpious struck up a conversation with another Slytherin boy so Albus opened a book and walked down the corridor. He'd basically memorized his way to his classes so he never got lost. As he was walking he felt something hit him but ignored it, too engrossed in his book. He thought he heard someone calling after him but just kept walking, too interested in dragons and hippogriffs. After two more classes it was time for lunch. Albus was talking to Scorpious about how Violet, a girl from ravenclaw, transformed a spider into an eight legged cup when James stopped him.

"Al we need to talk. I think you're taking this Slytherin thing too seriously," James said seriously.

"What are you talking about?" Albus asked incredulously.

"How can you just run into someone and not apologize?" James accused. Albus was stunned. He hadn't run into anybody.

"I don't understand. I didn't run over anybody," Albus said. Albus wracked his brains trying to think of when he hit someone.

"Yes you did! You walked right into Theodore Longbottom and didn't even stop to help him up!" James was getting annoyed now. Albus was shocked. He'd met Theodore at one of his family get togethers with the Longbottoms. He liked Theodore, he'd never try to hurt him.

"I-I did? I don't remember," Albus stuttered. His mind was spinning as he tried desperately to think of when this could've happened.

"Stop playing dumb! You knocked him over and didn't apologize, bottom line. Now, I didn't think you deserved to be in Slytherin but maybe I was wrong," James nearly shouted. He stormed off leaving Albus frozen in the corridor. James' words stung.

"Al, don't listen to him. It was an accident," Scorpious tried to reassure. Albus turned towards him and said, "An accident?"

"Yeah, I was there remember. You were reading while walking down the corridor and you ran into someone else. Honestly, I thought you'd stop too but you just kept walking," Scorpious said. Suddenly, Albus remembered walking down the corridor and feeling something hit him.

"Bu-but I wasn't paying attention! I never would do that on purpose! Or walk away!" Albus was frantic. Did people really think he was that heartless? In response to that question, Theodore and another boy came around the corner. The other boy glared at him and walked past. Theodore looked at Albus and then at the floor, avoiding his eyes.

"Theodore!" Albus called running after him. Theodore turned much to the dislike of the other boy.

"I-I'm sorry! I didn't know I hit you-"

"Didn't know you 'it him? Bloody 'ell, you're worse den I thought!" the other boy exclaimed.

"No really! I was reading and I didn't know you were there! Usually people just get out of the way so I-" Albus pleaded.

"Can you believe dis guy? Come on Theo," the other boy pulled Theodore towards the Ravenclaw table. Theodore looked at Albus with sad eyes and turned away. Albus was too stunned to move.

"Come on, let's go eat," Scorpious suggested.

"I'm not hungry," Albus mumbled. He practically ran back to the Slytherin common room. He felt awful for running into Theodore. Theodore was like a big teddy bear. He was almost six feet tall at twelve years old and was round like a teddy bear. Everyone loved Theodore and he loved everyone back. Albus put his head in his hands. James thought he belonged in Slytherin. If that was supposed to be a joke, James had gone too far. But, Albus knew it hadn't been a joke.


	5. Chapter 5

That's how Rhyleigh found Albus in the Slytherin common room, head in his hands and shoulders slightly shaking from crying. Albus looked up as he heard someone knock a table and looked up to find Rhyleigh staring at him with a concerned expression. Albus quickly wiped his eyes and choked out, "Sorry."

"No, it's ok," Rhyleigh mumbles. There's an awkward pause and then Rhyleigh sits down next to Albus.

"I'm sorry I saw you crying," Rhyleigh tries. Albus doesn't answer, still trying to control his emotions.

"You know it's no shame to cry, everyone does it," Rhyleigh tries again. Albus nods and stutters, "It's a natural part of the body. Y-You n-need to cry s-sometimes." Rhyleigh nods softly. The silence grows longer, like it's waiting for the flood.

"I bumped into a friend today and didn't even know it," Albus confesses looking at the ground. Rhyliegh nods and replies, "I heard about that." Albus's head snaps up.

"Gossip gets around," Rhyleigh shrugs, "Plus you are the son of a war hero. And a fight with your brother in front of the Great Hall probably didn't help." Albus's shoulders sag with guilt.

"I'm so stupid," he mumbles. Albus feels Rhyleigh tense and reply, "No you're not."

"Yes I am!" Albus exclaims.

"How can you be so stupid as to read a book while walking, run into someone, and not even know!?" Rhyleigh's gaze hardens and she says again, "No you're not."

"How can I be so stupid that I-" Albus begins again but is cut off by Rhyleigh yelling, "NO YOU'RE NOT!" Albus looks up shocked. Rhyleigh's eyes are alight with fire and indignant refusal.

"You are NOT stupid! Stupid is when you can't read a book all the way through or write a paragraph on you favorite subject. No, you are NOT stupid! You're smart. Smart people read books to learn more and not just to read books. Smart people write essays explaining why you use dragon heartstring instead of a phoenix's feather in a potion. Your are NOT stupid, You are smart. Stop moping around and focus on fixing your problem!" Rhyleigh shouts. By the end of her speech she's standing over a very shocked Albus. Rhyleigh stares for one more second then spins on her heel and storms out of the common room. Albus sat there stunned for a while. Rhyleigh was right. He needed to stop feeling sorry for himself and figure out how to repair his relationship with Theodore. Albus thought of different ways he could apologize to Theodore for the rest of lunch. Scorpious came to find Albus and they went to their next class together. Throughout the rest of his classes, Albus focused on apologizing to Theodore. When he finally felt he knew how to fix his relationship he said goodbye to Scorpious, went to the Hospital Wing, and left with a small bottle of deep blue liquid. Albus raced around the castle looking for Theodore. Finally, he found him on his way back to Gryffindor Tower and stopped him before he entered the common room. The other boy was with him and greeted Albus with a "What da ya want, snake?" Albus flinched at the Slytherin reference but turned towards Theodore.

"Theodore, I am sorry that I ran into you today. I truly didn't know what I did but that's not an excuse. I don't know how to make it up to you but I thought that maybe- I mean if you were hurt from the fall-if you had a bruise-I-here's some tonic that should make it go away. I really am sorry," Albus finished quickly. He held out the bottle towards Theo and the other boy scowled.

"Don't take it Theo! He's just tryin' to mess with ya," the other boy accused, crossing his arms. Albus looked from Theo to the other boy nervously. Please let Theo understand it was an accident. Theodore looked from Albus to his friend to the ground. Albus was about to give up when Theo looked him in the eye and took the bottle.

"I understand. I know you Albus, you're not one to purposely hurt someone. Thank you for apologizing," Theo said in a warm voice. Albus grinned and Theo smiled back. The other boy threw his had up in exasperation.

"See you around?" Theo asked.

"See you around!" Albus replied smiling. Albus turned away and rushed back to the Slytherin common room to tell Scorpious the good news. The common room was almost full with students studying or playing games with their friends. Albus spotted Scorpious in a corner munching on a pile of food and writing an essay.

"Hey there mate! Did it work? I brought some food from the kitchens, thought you might be hungry since you didn't eat lunch or dinner," Scorpious said. At the thought of food, Albus's stomach grumbled loudly. The two boys grinned at each other and Albus sat down to stuff his face.

"I' w'ked," Albus said through a mouthful of roasted chicken. Hogwarts food was delicious!

"Good!" Scorpious acknowledged going back to his essay, "You know you're too kind for you own good. I don't know how you got into Slytherin! Most of us are downright snakelike." Albus paused in his splurge and thought about his problem again. Why was he in Slytherin? Scorpious looked up at Albus's silence and quickly said, "Not that it's a bad thing! I was saying it's good you're so nice. I mean, the rest of Slytherin house could try to be nicer."Albus nodded and looked around the room. Most of the students looked nice enough except that they had an aura of superiority around them. Albus couldn't put his finger on it but they just oozed superiority, for lack of a better word. Just then Rhyleigh came in and darted between people. She was clutched her bag tightly and tried to look as small and as invisible as possible. It seemed to work because no one even acknowledged she was there.

"Rhyleigh!" Albus called and waved her over. She hesitated and then worked her way towards Albus and Scorpious.

"Yes?" she asked shyly. Her chocolate brown eyes stared at Albus nervously. Albus smiled and said, "Thanks for what you said earlier." Rhyleigh blinked in surprise.

"Oh-um-you're welcome," she replied blushing slightly. Albus smiled and asked, "You want to join our feast?" Rhyleigh cracked a smile and sat down.

"I've heard the little apple pies are amazing," Albus joked and Rhyleigh giggled. Albus liked Rhyleigh's giggle. He liked her smile. He felt that her smile and giggles were a rare thing that should be treasured. Scorpius even cracked a smile at that one.

"Speaking of your cousin, she rambles a lot doesn't she?" Scorpious asked. Albus heartily agreed and the three became engrossed in a conversation about cousins, relatives, and siblings. When the food ran out and Scorpious gave up on his essay they went to bed and had dreams of little apple pies talking rapidly.

**~Hey there! so i don't usually do this but might as well! I'm sorry i haven't updated in a while for those who may have been following this story! I have been really busy but i'm hoping that in the next two days i'll be uploading more! :) If you have any comments or questions about the story PM me or leave a review! i would love the help! :) thank you and i hope you enjoyed this chapter!~**


	6. Chapter 6

The next week passed without incident for the three friends. Albus daydreamed during class, Scorpious dutifully took notes, and Rhyleigh continued to look as small as possible. Albus's relationship with Theodore had been restored although Theo's friend still gave him death glares. Everything was pretty much fine, except for James. James ignored Albus and when he did acknowledge him it was with a death glare. Albus tried to shake it off but it was exhausting. He was still trying to figure out why he had been placed in Slytherin and it didn't help that your older brother believed you were some evil Slytherin spawn. Albus decided the best way to figure out why he was in Slytherin, and to convince himself it wasn't because he was evil, was to go to the library and read up on Slytherin traits. Albus checked out several books but none of them helped. They only talked about the great things Slytherin's did, which were usually dark and twisted.

"I'm sorry, dear. There are many books about what Slytherins have done but not their personality traits," the librarian apologized after Albus returned the sixth book he'd checked out on Slytherins. Albus sighed, he hated when he couldn't figure out a problem.

"You know, you're not the only one researching Slytherins," the librarian commented, giving Albus's book to a house elf who scurried off to put it away.

"Really? Who is it?" Albus asked. At that moment a boy with long brown hair slammed his books on the counter and said, "These didn't have anything either!"

"Hush child! No need to raise your voice at me. Don't yell at the hand that feeds you," the librarian scolded, taking the books. Albus realized the books were the same ones he had checked out earlier. They were all about Slytherins.

"Are you researching Slytherins?" Albus asked. The boy turned to Albus with a defensive expression and replied nastily, "What's it to you?"

"Just curious," Albus muttered. He thanked the librarian and left the library quickly. Over the next couple of days, Albus noticed the boy more often. He seemed to have the same schedule as Albus did but always sat in the front of the class with his back straight and eyes focused forward. Anyone who tried to ask him a question or simply talk to him would get an answer marinated in superiority. He was snappish and generally, no one liked him. As much as he acted superior, his appearance shouted the opposite. He wore second-hand robes and had second-hand books. He was tall and gangly, like he didn't quite fit in his body yet. His eyes were a blue-grey that were always on the defensive.

"Do you know who that is?" Albus asked Scorpious one day. Scorpious looked up from his letter that he'd just received and glanced at the boy.

"Oh that's Tevya Longhorn. Everyone says he's a rude git," Scoripious stated going back to his breakfast and letter. Tevya, what an odd name. Rhyleigh sat down next to Albus looking pale.

"Hey where have you been?" Scorpious asked. Rhyleigh mumbled something about talking to a teacher and reached for a muffin.

"Are you alright?" Albus asked. Rhyleigh nodded stiffly and nibbled at her muffin. There was another problem. Albus had noticed that Rhyleigh still wasn't taking notes in class or turning in homework. And how did Albus know her? He knew that they'd met at some time, he just couldn't remember. Albus's head spun in circles thinking about Tevya, Rhyleigh, and the Slytherin problem. That night, at least one problem was solved. Albus was in the common room helping Scorpious with his homework when his quill broke. Albus looked around to see if he could ask to borrow one and saw Tevya working on his homework in the corner.

"Hey, it's Tevya right?" Albus asked. Tevya looked up with surprise but he quickly changed his face into a smirk that said I'm-better-than-you'll-ever-be.

"Yeah," Tevya answered.

"Do you have a quill I can borrow?" Albus asked. Tevya looked at him with disgust and replied, "No, and if I did, I wouldn't give it to you. I'm sure if you just say you're Harry Potter's son you could get a bright shiny new quill whenever you wanted from whoever you wanted." Albus was shocked by that statement. Sure he knew his family was famous, they'd had to battle the media all their lives, but this was the first time someone had accused him of using his father as an influence.

"Hey, he was just asking for a quill, you git!" Scorpious said coming to Albus's defense. Tevya's eyes blazed and he yelled, "Git!? Who the hell do you think you are? What-"

"You can drop the fake superiority act," a small voice interrupts. Albus and Scorpious turn to find Rhyleigh standing behind them, clutching her bag, with a calculated mask plastered on her face.

"Wha-what 'fake superiority act'? How dare-" Tevya says breathing heavily but Rhyleigh cuts him off.

"You can drop the act. No one here is going to question your magic of house placement." Tevya's face grows pale.

"Wha-what do y-you mean?" Tevya stammers. Rhyleigh takes a breath and says, "The only reason you're acting like a git is so that no one can tease you about being muggleborn and in Slytherin. You don't have to keep proving you're a wizard, we've all seen you do magic. You catch on fast in charms and you're a natural in potions. So drop the act and start acting like a decent person." Albus, Scorpious, and Tevya sit in stunned silence. Albus and Scorpious turn towards Tevya as he squirms uncomfortably.

"I'm sorry. You're right, I'm acting like a git to cover up my parentage," Tevya mumbles looking at his feet. So that's why he was so defensive, Albus thought. He's from muggle parents and he was put into the house that consisted of mostly purebloods.

"You know it's not bad to come from muggles. Sometimes I wish I'd come from muggle parents instead on magical parents," Scorpious commented. Everyone stared at him.

"What? My parents are all 'Scor, you're going to be a great wizard because you descended from very powerful wizards and witches' and 'Scor, don't repeat your family's mistakes.' It would be nice to come from a family that had no idea of the wizarding world so everything was new," Scorpious explained. Albus had never thought of it that way. How would it feel to get your Hogwarts letter when you didn't even new magic existed?

"It's not as nice as you'd think. My mom can't tell anyone where I am and she can't visit. I love it here but she can never experience Hogwarts because she's a muggle," Tevya clarified.

"What about your dad?" Albus asked.

"He died in a crash when I was three. It's just me and my mum," Tevya says quietly. There's an awkward silence in which no one knows what to say.

"So because your mum's a muggle, you've been trying to find out why you were put into Slytherin," Albus stated. Tevya nods, looking at the ground again. Albus beams and says, "Well you're in luck because I want to know why I'm in Slytherin too!" Tevya looks up surprised.

"Really?" Albus nods. Tevya smiles slowly, relief filling his face.

"I've looked through every book I could find about Slytherins at the library," Tevya says.

"Me too but I was thinking, maybe we need to look elsewhere besides books," Albus ventured.

"Where would you look?" Scorpious asks. Albus shrugs and says, "I haven't got that far."

"What about the pictures?" Rhyleigh asks. Three pairs of eyes stare at her. Rhyleigh blushes slightly and stammers, "I-I mean-I'm sure there's s-some Slytherins in the pictures th-that would be happy to help." Albus smiles and says, "That's brilliant!" Rhyleigh's face falters slightly, looking sad but she attempts a small smile.

"Which one do we talk to?" Tevya questions leaning forward. Albus thinks for a moment. Who would be willing to help them? Then he remember his name sake, Severus Snape.

"What if we asked Severus Snape?" Albus asks.

"But he's in the headmistress's office and I doubt she'd let us in to talk about houses with a picture," Scorpious says.

"We could ask the other pictures to go get him. They can travel through pictures right?" Tevya says. Albus smiles and looks around for a portrait. In the corner there's a picture of a fat man with straight blonde hair. He looks out at the common room with a look of disgust and superiority. Albus approached the portrait and asked, "Sir?" The man in the portrait looks at him and with a sigh says, "What."

"Could you ask Severus Snape to come talk to us, please?" Albus asked politely.

"What do I look like, an owl?" the fat man sneers in contempt.

"Could you tell him Harry Potter's son wants to talk to him?" Albus tried. The portrait stared at Albus for a few moments then turned a walked off in a "huff." Scorpious raised an eyebrow at Albus. Albus blushed and said, "I don't usually use my dad's fame like that but it was the only thing I could think of!" Tevya smirked and even Rhyleigh cracked a smile. Albus turned back to the portrait with his ears growing red. Moments later a figure made his way into view from the portrait. It was a tall man with long, straight, black, greasy hair, a pointed nose, and cold eyes.

"You're Harry Potter's son?" the man said in a silky voice. Albus, suddenly at a loss for words, nodded nervously. The man scans the others faces and rests on Scorpious.

"You're friends with a Malfoy? How unlike your father," Severus Snape states turning back to Albus, "Well?" Albus quickly cleared his hand and said, "My name's Albus Severus Potter and this is Scorpious Malfoy, Tevya Longhorn, and Rhyleigh-" Albus faltered when he realized he didn't know Rhyleigh's last name.

"Just Rhyleigh," she said in a small voice. That's odd, Albus thought but pushed it out of his mind and went back to his conversation.

"We were wondering if you could help us with a problem. Tevya and I don't understand why we were put in Slytherin. We were hoping you could help us understand what makes us Slytherins," Albus explained. Severus looked at each face, staring into their souls. They shifted uncomfortably except for Albus. He was fascinated by his namesake. His father had told him that he was one of the bravest men he's ever known. Severus's eyes scanned Albus and he seemed to contemplate Albus.

"Slytherins are known for their ambition, cunning, and resourcefulness; all good qualities. However, with each good quality comes a degree of "bad" or "evil." Ambition can be seen as a flaw not a strength and cunning can be used for the wrong reasons. What and how you use your attributes is up to you and you alone. It is not the house of Slytherin that makes you an "evil" wizard or witch, it is your morals. If that is all, goodnight," Severus explains. He turned and walked away and soon the fat man replaced him. Albus stood there in thought for a few moments, chewing on Severus's words. Ambition, cunning, and resourcefulness. He didn't know if he was cunning but was he ambitious? Ambition was the desire for personal achievement. Albus strived to learn as much as possible because it made him feel different from his father and brother. His father was very famous and Albus didn't want to live in his shadow. He wanted to be known, not because of his father, but because of what he could do. That was ambition. Albus breathed in and sighed, letting go of the problem that had been plaguing him. He looked around at the Slytherin common room and allowed himself to feel at home. He looked back at his friends and smiled. Tevya smiled back, showing Albus he wasn't worried anymore. Scorpious smirked and Rhyleigh smiled shyly. Albus beamed and embraced his knew family.


	7. Chapter 7

Albus had finally figured it out. After accepting he was in Slytherin, his anxiety about the houses lessened and his problem was solved. With it solved he moved on to his next problem. Rhyleigh. Why did she look familiar? Why did he not know her last name? Had she ever talked about her family or where she came from? His mind was filled with these questions and occupied all of his thoughts. Well most of them at least. He still read constantly and by now the teachers had given up telling him to stop. Albus was grateful for the problem because otherwise he was afraid he would die of boredom. He knew all of the information in his classes and nothing was new. In charms, he was the first to say the spell right and in potions, he was the first to correctly brew a potion. He often filled his time helping Scorpious and Tevya with their homework, which they gladly asked for. However, whenever he asked Rhyleigh, she always shook her head and headed off to her dormitory. Albus wanted to help because Rhyleigh was still struggling in her classes. She had been asked to stay after class multiple times but she never improved. She still didn't do her homework or take notes. Albus was worried about his friend but she refused help.

"Al, you can't worry about everyone. She'll figure things out. Girls always do," Scorpious said one day after Albus expressed his thoughts. Albus rolled his eyes.

"Look, she's probably struggling with something and has too much pride to ask for help," Tevya offered, "My mom gets like that sometimes." Albus nodded and the three went back to talking about quidditch. Albus had discovered that both his friends worshipped quidditch and couldn't wait to try out next year. They compared broom models, favorite teams, and the best gear. Albus tried to listen but wasn't really interested. He had flown on his brother's broom at one of their family gatherings and he enjoyed flying. It was a nice stress reliever and it was cool to be on the birds' level. However, he wasn't very good at quidditch. He knew he wasn't very athletic so that was one of the reasons he threw himself into learning everything and anything.

"Hey Al! We're gonna go watch a quidditch practice, wanna come?" Tevya asked excitedly. Albus declined using the excuse that he wanted to work on their transfiguration homework. Scorpious pointed out that he could finish his homework with his eyes closed. Albus shrugged and his two friends walked off towards the pitch. Albus took his time walking back to the common room looking at the architecture of Hogwarts. He'd read the book a couple of times and found it interesting how they'd built the entire castle using magic. It seemed logical that wizards would build everything with magic but magic took a lot of energy. So to have built a castle that was this big and this heavily fortified was a huge accomplishment, not to mention that they'd repaired it the same way they'd built it after the Second Wizarding War. Albus was still marveling at the enormity of the castle when he walked into the common room. He stopped abruptly when he heard a sniffle come from the other side of the room. He turned and saw Rhyleigh curled up on one of the armchairs, crying softly.

"Rhyleigh?" Albus called. Her head snapped up and she quickly tried to wipe her eyes.

"H-hi Albus. I-I didn't t-think anyone w-was in h-here," she stuttered. Albus sat down next to her not sure how to help. He looked at her eyes and felt another jolt of recognition.

"Did someone do or say something to you?" Albus asked quietly. Rhyleigh sniffled and then looked Albus in the eye, confused. Suddenly, it all hit Albus. He had seen Rhyleigh before and he knew exactly where he had seen her. He felt his jaw drop and watched Rhyleigh's face go white.

"I've never met you before that day on the train," Rhyleigh whimpered pitifully. Albus shook his head and stood up.

"You were the girl at the fountain who was playing the violin last Christmas. I remember your eyes! They were such a beautiful chocolate brown color. But why didn't you want me to know?" Albus asked. Rhyleigh looked down and didn't say anything. Albus started pacing.

"I don't understand why you didn't tell me before. I mean, I think it's cool that you play the violin! Especially in public! I mean, I couldn't do anything like that. Why didn't you want me to know? unless…" Albus thought out loud. He stopped pacing, remembering what the burly man had said, "We don't want your kind around here!" Albus closed his eyes finally realizing why Rhyleigh hadn't said anything. He turned towards her and sat down next to her.

"Rhyleigh? Do you have a home?" Rhyleigh shook her head. She wouldn't look at Albus.

"Do you have a family?" She shook her head again. They sat in silence for a while letting the information sink in.

"There's nothing to be ashamed of, Rhyleigh," Albus said. Rhyleigh looked up with sad eyes.

"I don't b-belong here," Rhyleigh whispered. Albus looked into her eyes and saw sorrow. Sorrow that I'd figured out her secret. Sorrow about her situation. Sorrow that she didn't fit in at school. A final light bulb went off in Albus' head.

"Rhyleigh, how long have you been homeless?" Albus asked. Rhyleigh looked at him, gauging how much she wanted to confide in him. She sighed and said, "Since I was five." Albus was stunned.

"And you've been living on your own since then?" Rhyleigh nodded. Albus took a deep breath, trying to find the most gentle way to approach his next question.

"Rhyleigh," his tone of voice made her look at him, "Can you read?" Rhyleigh's eyes filled with tears and her sorrow deepened. Albus also saw a little bit of fear.

"Can you write?" Rhyleigh closed her eyes as the tears flowed down her cheeks. She shook her head. Albus didn't know what to say.

"I was stupid to come here," Rhyleigh turned away and made to get up.

"What!?" Albus nearly shouted. Rhyleigh spun around and sat down. Albus rarely shouted or even raised his voice.

"You're not stupid!" Albus tried to control his tone. Rhyleigh looked at him with disbelief and said, "You can't seriously think that."

"No I know that! You're not stupid!" Albus shouted. Rhyleigh shook her head and looked down.

"Fine! If I'm not stupid, than what am I?" Rhyleigh challenged.

"Just because you can't read or write doesn't make you stupid. It just means you weren't given the tools to excel," Albus explained. Rhyleigh looked at him with disblelief.

"Look, you're smart. You'd have to be to live on the streets for six years," Rhyleigh's disbelief faded a little bit, "You survived by yourself for six years. You have to be smart because you'd have to avoid thugs and bad places, not to mention child services. Speaking of that, why aren't you in an orphanage or in foster care?" Rhyleigh had been looking down, thinking about what he was saying, but the question snapped her out of her thoughts.

"I was in an orphanage at first but it was crowded and disgusting. I felt I could live better on my own so I left. I've never regretted my decision," Rhyleigh explained. Her eyes had gone cold and Albus knew there was more to the story but she wasn't going to elaborate. Albus nodded and sat down. Slowly, Rhyleigh sat down next to him.

"Please don't tell anyone," Rhyleigh whispered. Albus looked over at Rhyleigh and said, "We should at least tell the Headmistress." Rhyleigh shook her head and the fear returned to her eyes.

"She'll kick me out," she pleaded. Albus shook his head, a plan forming in his head. He stood up and held his hand out.

"The Headmistress will understand and she'll help you. Trust me," Rhyleigh looked at him, then to his hand. She struggled for a few minutes and then took Albus' hand.

"Ok, we'll tell her," Rhyleigh said. Albus smiled and they walked out of the common room together.


	8. Chapter 8

They walked in silence to the Headmistresses office. Albus was still reeling from his discovery. Rhyleigh was homeless and didn't know how to read or write. Albus didn't know why he was so shocked. It just seemed like she knew a lot but Albus figured that must've been what she wanted. She'd had six years to perfect the look she projected. Which brought Albus back to the moment when he'd first met Rhyleigh. He remembered how confident she'd looked playing the violin and how beautiful it had sounded.

"Rhyleigh, where did you learn to play the violin?" Albus asked.

"I learned it on my own. I once saw someone play and when I found a discarded violin I played around with it," Rhyleigh explained. She blushed at Albus' shocked expression.

"You taught yourself how to play violin?" Albus questioned. Rhyleigh smiled shyly and nodded. Albus whistled in appreciation.

"You know, you should join the orchestra," Albus commented and Rhyleigh laughed.

"I'm not that good," she chuckled.

"Not that good? Please, I've never heard someone play like that much less a song like that. By the way, what was it called?" Albus asked. Rhyleigh shook her head and said, "I like to call it Winter's Memory. It's what I dream of every winter." Albus looked over at Rhyleigh with increasing admiration. She caught him staring and blushed. Albus blushed too and focused on what was ahead of the. They were almost to the Headmistresses office. Albus only knew where it was because his father had told him. Harry had told his children where it was in case of an emergency. The only thing Albus didn't know was the password. Albus and Rhyleigh stopped in front of the gargoyle and wondered what they should do.

"Um…Albus Dumbledore?" Albus tried. The gargoyle was still.

"Severus Snape?" the gargoyle didn't move.

"Why your namesakes?" Rhyleigh asked curious. Albus blushed and said, "I didn't mean it like that. I-It's just they were two headmasters before and…" Albus trailed off as he saw the mischievous glint in Rhyleigh's eyes. Albus smiled and teased, "Fine you try." Rhyleigh giggled and said, "Pumpkin Pasties." The gargoyle rumbled and moved to reveal a staircase. Rhyleigh laughed at the look on Albus' face.

"You forget that I've been called to her office a couple of times," Rhyleigh explained, "And their her favorite food." Albus shook his head and smiled. Rhyleigh was just full of surprises. They climbed the stairs and with each step, Rhyleigh looked more and more afraid. Albus started to get the feeling that maybe this wasn't the best idea. Sure, everyone always said go to an adult when you had a problem but what about if it hurt the person you were trying to help. Albus tried to shake the feeling as he knocked on the door.

"Come in," a voice called. They opened the door and walked into the Headmistresses office. The office was decorated in rich vibrant colors. It had a feeling of grandeur and comfort at the same time. Albus saw the sword of Gryffindor displayed just as his father had described it. Albus felt a pang of longing to hold it, knowing that he never would. The Headmistress sat at her desk looking over papers with a look of weariness.

"Ah Mr. Potter and Miss Rhyleigh, two people that I wanted to see," the Headmistress said as she glanced up. She looked just like Albus' father had said, green robes, kind but stern face. However, her hair was going white towards the roots but she still achieved the look of a teacher who didn't take lightly to being late. Professor McGongall was a formidable headmistress. Rhyleigh fidgeted next to Albus. Albus took a deep breath and said, "We came to tell you something." Professor McGonagall arched in eyebrow and set down her quill. Albus looked over at Rhyleigh who was looking at the floor with a terrified look on her face.

"Well, spit it out Potter, I don't have all day," Professor McGonagall snapped. Albus looked back at the Headmistress and knew what he had to do.

"Rhyleigh told me that she can't read or write," Albus could feel Rhyleigh stiffen next to him and Professor McGonagall's eyebrows shot up. Albus took a deep breath and said, "She told me it was because of her situation at home," he could feel Rhyleigh freeze next to him, "She said that her parents never got an education so they never taught her anything." Rhyleigh twitched next to him but didn't look up. Albus' heart thumped. He didn't like to lie but he knew that this was the right thing for Rhyleigh. Professor McGonagall looked at him then looked at Rhyleigh.

"Is this true?" she asked kindly. Rhyleigh nodded but didn't look up. Professor McGonagall's face softened and she asked, "Why didn't you tell me sooner?" Rhyleigh just shrugged and stared at the ground. Professor McGonagall sighed and rubbed her nose.

"Well we'll find you a tutor and get you caught up, alright? There's no need to feel ashamed," Professor McGongall. She was about to dismiss them when Albus said, "Can I be her tutor?" Rhyleigh and McGonagall both looked up at Albus. Albus squirmed slightly but plowed on, "I know everything in class, I wouldn't be missing anything. Plus were friends and in the same class. No one would have to know, we'd just be on a different schedule." Albus looked over at Rhyleigh who had an amazed look on her face. Professor McGonagall contemplated it for a moment then said, "Alright. Tomorrow morning I will show you to an empty classroom and you may stay there and work. If I catch you playing outside or disturbing other classes, this stops immediately." Albus and Rhyleigh nodded and Professor McGonagall dismissed them. Albus and Rhyleigh scurried out of the office and back to the common room.

"Albus," Rhyleigh said. Albus looked at Rhyleigh who's eyes glistened with unshed tears.

"Thank you," she smiled. Albus smiled back and they headed off to the Great Hall for dinner. Meanwhile, back in the Headmistresses office, McGonagall looked after the two students thoughtfully.

"You know Albus was lying," a silky voice said.

"Yes, but that's a problem for another day," Professor McGongall answered Snape, "Since when do you call the Potter children anything other than Potter Spawn?" Snape cleared his throat and said, "I've talked to the boy. He's interesting and he's in my house." Snape turned and walked away in his picture as McGonagall chuckled.


	9. Chapter 9

The next morning, Professor McGonagall showed Albus and Rhyleigh to an empty classroom and they got started on their private lessons. Albus had researched the night before on how to teach someone how to read and write. First he showed her the alphabet and the different sounds each letter made. She absorbed the information quickly and learned fast. Before they knew it, it was time for lunch. As they walked to lunch, Albus said, "You know, we should probably tell Scorpious and Tevya what we're doing." Rhyleigh squirmed and Albus realized she'd already thought about it.

"I was going to tell them the story you told the Headmistress but…" Rhyleigh trailed off as Scorpious and Tevya approached them.

"Hey where were you guys?" Scorpious asked.

"Yeah, you weren't in class? Did you finally skip Albus?" Tevya teased. Albus rolled his eyes and laughed. He was about to answer them when Rhyleigh piped up, "Can I tell you guys something?" All three boys looked at her in surprise. Scorpious and Tevya nodded and Rhyleigh started walking towards the Slytherin common room. Scorpious and Tevya gave Albus questioning looks but Albus just shrugged. Once they arrived in the common room, Rhyleigh looked around but nobody was there. She motioned for everyone to sit down and she took her seat in an armchair.

"Ok," she started then stopped. She fidgeted with her hands, obviously struggling with something. Finally she took a deep breath, looked up, and said, "The reason I wasn't in class was because Albus was teaching me how to read and write." Scorpious' mouth fell open and Tevya had the decency to shove him in the ribs. Rhyleigh took another deep breath and continued, "The reason I can't read and write is because…because," she closed her eyes, opened them, "I'm homeless." This time Scorpious' and Tevya's mouths fell open and Albus' eyebrows shot up. He didn't think she'd actually tell them the whole story. Rhyleigh met Albus' gaze and an understanding went between them. They were her friends, probably first friends, and she was taking a leap of faith in entrusting them with her secret. Albus could tell it was extremely hard for her by how bad her hands were shaking. Again and again, Rhyleigh was amazing Albus.

"I've been homeless since I was five and I didn't want anyone to know," Rhyleigh explained. Scorpious still had his mouth open but Tevya had sat back with a contemplative look on his face.

"I already told the Headmistress that I couldn't read or write but not that I was homeless. I told her my parents were uneducated and they couldn't teach me, which is untrue because I don't have any parents," Rhyleigh finished by looking down at the floor. Albus hadn't known for sure if Rhyleigh was an orphan but now she'd just confirmed it.

"Why?" Scorpious asked innocently. Albus was starting to realize that Scorpious didn't really think about what came out of his mouth.

"Well," Rhyleigh started but Tevya interrupted.

"You don't have to tell us just yet. It's probably private information," Tevya emphasized "private" for Scorpious. However, it didn't look like Scorpious understood because he stared at Rhyleigh waiting for an answer.

"Scor, she doesn't want to talk about it," Albus said. Scorpious made an "o" with his mouth then nodded that he understood.

"Al, how long have you known?" Tevya asked.

"She told me, well I figured it out yesterday," Albus explained. Rhyleigh nodded and Tevya looked between them.

"Well, your secret's safe with us. We won't tell anyone," Tevya promised. Scorpious agreed with an enthusiastic nod and a slow smile crept across Rhyleigh's face.

"Thanks," she said softly.

"No, thank you for telling us," Tevya replied. Rhyleigh nodded and they all looked at each other.

"Since when did you get so polite?" Scorpious asked Tevya. Tevya blushed and they all started laughing.

"I live with my mother. She's always telling me what to or not to say to a girl so," Tevya tried to explain but just ended up putting his hands up in surrender.

"Come on, let's go get some food," Albus suggested. They made their way down to the Great Hall and sat down to eat. Shortly after sitting down, Albus was tapped on the shoulder. He turned around to see his brother motioning for the door. Albus grabbed a pb&j sandwich and followed after his brother. His brother was still giving him the cold shoulder after what happened with Theo. He hadn't so much as looked in Albus' direction recently. Albus tried not to think about it too much but it hurt. Albus was just starting to get comfortable and James' constant shunning was ruining it. They walked out of the Great Hall and down a corridor. James stopped and faced Albus.

"Al, I wanted to talk to you," James started. Well that was obvious, Albus thought.

"I wanted to talk to you about your friends," James went on. What? My friends? Albus thought.

"I think they're a bad influence on you, especially that Tevya guy. He's rude to everyone and you don't need to be around people like that," James rambled. James then talked about introducing Albus to some of his friends or some people from Gryffindor. Albus was stunned. Unconciously, he started to doubt his friends but after a quick evaluation he realized it was ludicrous! Sure Tevya could be rude but it was his defense mechanism. Scorpious was guilty of not thinking before he opened his mouth. And Rhyleigh, she had done nothing to look bad except not do her classwork. Albus could feel anger burning in his stomach.

"…I mean, I'm sure Theo would love to hang out with you-" James was saying.

"Are you serious?" Albus asked. He clenched his fists trying to control his anger. James stared at his brother.

"Am I? Yeah I'm serious! They're a bad influence on you," James retorted.

"I can't believe you! If anyone's a bad influence on me is you!" Albus yelled pointing at James.

"Me? Are you kidding me?" Albus could see James getting angry but Albus couldn't stop now.

"No, I'm not! You come in here trying to control who I can or cannot be friends with! That's so stupid when you haven't even been a brother to me these past few weeks!" Albus shouted.

"A brother to you? You've been a snobbish git ever since you came here! Reading in class, ignoring the teachers, don't think I haven't heard about it! Everyone thinks you deserve to be in Slytherin because you're acting like a pureblood!" James yelled. Albus flinched at the pureblood insult.

"I've been trying to defend you saying you should've been in Gryffindor and that the Slytherin's are just tainting you-"

"Tainting me!? When did you start to hate Slytherins, James?" Albus challenged.

"I've always hated Slytherins! They're slimy little gits who think they're the top of the school! They push people around so that they can get to the top! They don't care about anyone around them!" James shouted. Albus couldn't believe it. He had never thought that his brother would agree with the stereotypical Griffindor attitude of hating Slytherins.

"So you hate Slytherins? You hate me? Fine, I get it, you never like me anyways," Albus threw in James' face.

"No, that's not what I meant! Haven't you been listening! You should be in Griffindor!" James defended.

"No!" Albus shouted, "I don't! I deserve to be in Slytherin! That's where I belong!" Albus watched as his brother's face contorted in rage.

"I'm too late. You've already been tainted by Slytherin-pureblood-fanatics," James said dangerously. He gave Albus one more glare and then stomped back to the Great Hall. Albus was breathing heavily and finally noticed the small crowd that had gathered. Albus blushed with embarrassment and shame. He headed back to the Great Hall and sat next to Scorpious.

"What did James want?" Scor asked reaching for an apple. At the mention of James' name, Albus felt his face burn with anger.

"Al, you alright?" Tevya asked noticing Albus' silence. Albus nodded and tried to paste a smile on his face. He was infuriated with James. How DARE he suggest he leave his friends! He didn't know them. How DARE he! Albus savagely bit into his sandwich. Sudddenly a small chocolate cake, the size of a cup, was placed in front of him. Albus looked up to see Rhyleigh smiling at him.

"One of the things I learned so far by coming here is that your values are tested and challenged. Was James right?" Rhyleigh asked. Albus thought about that. James had accused Slytherins of still holding to the pureblood fanatics but just by being with Scorpious knew that not all Slytherins thought like that. Scorpious had repeatedly said that what his family did was wrong and that he didn't agree with them. Albus had seen Scorpious talk with known muggle-borns and there had never been any hate or underlying motive behind it. Albus looked at Rhyleigh and shook his head.

"See, first test passed," Rhyleigh smiled, "Stay true to yourself Albus." Rhyleigh went back to her lunch and Scorpious and Tevya looked between them confused. Albus thought about what Rhyleigh had said and smiled.

"James accused Slytherins of being slimy gits who pushed people out of their way to get to the top," Albus explained, "He also said he hated them and thus me." He felt Scorpious and Tevya bristle at the insult and Scorpious made a move to get up.

"It's fine, I told him I belonged in Slytherin and then he stomped off," Albus made Scorpious sit down and he grumbled into his food.

"Is this normal between siblings? I don't have any so I wouldn't know," Tevya asked. Albus shrugged and Scorpious piped up, "No! At least I could never hate my little sister even if she was in a different house. She'd still be the same person."

"I didn't know you had a sister," Albus said. Scorpious nodded still steaming over James' insult.

"Well what's her name?" Tevya asked.

"Oh her name's Azalea and she's nine years old. She looks a lot like my mom where I look more like my dad," Scorpious explained.

"Why wasn't she at the station to send you off?" Albus asked.

"She was with my grandparents. My parents thought it would be special if they gave me all of their attention," Scorpious said while blushing.

"Still, Albus your brother shouldn't have said that," Scorpious said. Albus sighed and said, "Yeah but I don't want to think about it right now. I'm not very good at arguing with him."

"We could teach you!" Scorpious suggested. They then harassed Albus into trying to aruge but instead were reduced to three laughing boys. Once they were done with lunch, Scorpious and Tevya headed off to class and Rhyleigh and Albus went to their empty classroom.

"Hey by the way, how did you know I loved chocolate cake?" Albus asked. Rhyleigh smirked and said, "Because you have it for desert every night." Albus blushed, Rhyleigh was really observant. They continued with the alphabet and started reading some basic books. It wasn't till that night, that Albus realized he'd forgotten something. That night at the fountain, there'd also been a dog. Where had it come from? Another problem to figure out, thought Albus as he drifted off to sleep.


	10. Chapter 10

"This is so frustrating!" Rhyleigh exclaimed exasperated. Albus chuckled lightly but stopped when Rhyleigh glared at him.

"Reading takes time and patience. Don't get discouraged! You're doing really well," Albus encouraged. Rhyleigh sighed heavily and put her face in her hands.

"I'm trying to be patient but I sound like an idiot," Rhyleigh confessed quietly. Albus had been teaching Rhyleigh for more than a week now and they were trying to read picture books. Albus had asked Professor McGonagall if she could get them some simple books to read and she had provided them with both muggle and wizard picture books. They were trying to read a book called The Red Ripe Strawberry and The Big Hungry Bear.

"Rhyleigh, you're doing really well! I remember when Lily started to read and she couldn't get through an entire book in one day. Your mastering at least five books a day and you could probably do more but I'm teaching you other stuff," Albus reassured. Rhyleigh peeked through her hands and said, "Really?" Albus smiled and nodded. He pushed the book towards her again and she sighed.

"Hello, lit-little Moose-mouse. What aree-are you doing?" Rhyleigh began. Albus smiled and corrected her when needed. He was proud of how far she'd come and he had told her the truth. Rhyleigh was improving rapidly and they would soon start reading the school textbooks.

"-the hungry Bear will never get," Rhyleigh finished. By the end of the book, Rhyleigh was speaking confidently and clearly. She smiled when she finished and Albus returned the smile.

"Well done! You want to move on with spells?" Albus asked. Rhyleigh's smile grew wider and she hopped off her chair.

"Review?" she asked. Albus nodded. Rhyleigh took a deep breath and said, "Lumos!" A bright light shone from her wand and stayed there until I nodded, signaling she could end the spell. Rhyleigh went through several other spells and Albus watched closely. Rhyleigh was decent at spells but it didn't come as naturally to her as it did to other kids their age.

"Ok," Albus said once she had done all of the spells that she'd learned previously, "How about a shield spell?" Rhyleigh gulped nervously but nodded. Albus got up and faced Rhyleigh.

"I've always thought it was easier to do this spell when you were looking at someone accross from you. To do the spell all you need to do is point your wand and say 'Protego'," Albus explained, "How would you spell 'Protego'?" Rhyleigh rolled her eyes at the spelling exercise but dutifully said, "P-r-o, protego, t-e-g-o." Albus smiled and nodded.

"Ok, go ahead," Albus said. Rhyleigh took a deep breath and said, "Protego!" Nothing happened.

"Protego!" Nothing. "PROTEGO!" Nothing. Rhyleigh sighed in frustration. Albus opened his mouth to say something but Rhyleigh interrupted, "I know! I know! Yelling louder doesn't make the spell more forceful, it just makes you look ridiculous." Albus chuckled, "When did I ever say that?" Rhyleigh shrugged and looked at the ground.

"Try closing your eyes and focus on protecting yourself, as if there's danger in front of you," Albus suggested. Rhyleigh closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She raised her hands and said, "Protego!" A powerful shield exploded out of Rhyleigh's wand and the force of it knocked Albus backwards into the wall. Albus slid limply to the ground. Rhyleigh gasped and rushed over to Albus' still body.

"Oh, oh no. Wha-what did I do?" Rhyleigh gently shook Albus, " Albus? Albus!? ALBUS!?" Albus groaned and Rhyleigh sighed in relief. Albus' eyes fluttered open and focused on Rhyleigh's concerned face.

"Albus are you okay? I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to! Really! I'm so so so sorry!" Rhyleigh apologized. She looked on the brink of tears.

"It-it's ok. I'm alright, I think," Albus replied shakily, "That was one heck of a shield." Rhyleigh didn't look convinced.

"Should I go get Madam Pomfrey?" Rhyleigh asked.

"No, I'm f-" Albus shook his head but then his vision went blurry. Albus groaned again and said, "Yeah, probably." Rhyleigh scurried off and in a few minutes was back with Madam Pomfrey.

"Well, what do we have here?" Madam Pomfrey asked with her hands on her hips. Albus had slowly sat up against the wall and had closed his eyes against the stars circling his head. Rhyleigh was pale and kept apologizing. Madam Pomfrey knelt down and scanned her wand over Albus.

"Honestly child! If you don't stop flittering about, I'll send you to the Headmistress!" Madam Pomfrey scolded. Rhyleigh quieted but still hovered anxiously. Madam Pomfrey mumbled a spell at Albus' chest and then at his head. His head cleared and he felt better immediately.

"Now, please be more careful. I'm going to talk to the Headmistress about having a supervisor in here," Madam Pomfrey scolded and walked back out. Rhyleigh knelt next to Albus and mumbled, "I'm really sorry."

"Rhyleigh, you have nothing to be sorry for," Albus said. Rhyleigh looked at him incredulously. Albus smiled, "You did exactly what I said. I wasn't expecting such a powerful shield therefore it's my fault." Rhyleigh still looked ashamed so Albus put his hand on her shoulder and said, "Seriously Rhyleigh, it's fine." Albus noticed that Rhyleigh flinched ever so slightly at his touch. As Albus thought about it, Rhyleigh probably wasn't used to people touching her or she'd learned to stay away from people. Albus lifted his hand and got up. Rhyleigh followed suit and they made their way back to the table.

"Rhyleigh, do you have to protect yourself a lot on the streets?" Albus asked. Rhyleigh looked up at the question and said, "Well, yeah. I have to protect the spot where I sleep, the food I collect, and from people who don't want me on the streets." Rhyleigh looked down at the last part.

"What do you mean 'don't want you on the streets?'" Rhyleigh fidgeted.

"There are some people who think homeless people are a drag on society. That we bring others down. That's true in some cases, but I don't. I stay out of people's way and only eat what others don't want," Rhyleigh explained. It now made sense to Albus why her shield had been so powerful, she'd had to protect herself a lot. Another thought occurred to Albus but before he could ask her about it, he heard a rustling behind him. He turned around just as a book came hurtling towards his face. He heard Rhyleigh gasp and felt something push him out of the book's line of fire. Rhyleigh squeaked and ducked as the book flew over her head. Albus had landed on the floor and was trying to figure out who or what had pushed him when he heard more rustling. Albus looked towards the sound and saw at least a dozen books flying towards him and Rhyleigh. He scrambled towards Rhyleigh who had just seen the books. They ducked and swatted at the attacking books.

"Where did they come from?" Rhyleigh yelled. Albus looked around and noticed an old cupboard with its door hanging open.

"They must've been in the cupboard!" Albus shouted. He grunted as one of the books hit him on the nose. Rhyleigh had her hands above her head protectively. Albus hit one of the books away but it just flew back at him.

"STOP!" Rhyleigh suddenly screamed. The books stopped attacking. Albus looked up to see all of the books frozen in time. He looked over at Rhyleigh and saw her with her hands outstretched. She was breathing heavily and looking around wildly. She was about to lower her hands when Albus said, "Wait! Don't lower your hands, keep the magic there!" Rhyleigh looked at him confused but kept her hands up. Albus got up slowly and carefully collected all of the books. He stacked them in the cupboard, closed the door, and said a locking charm. He nodded to Rhyleigh and she lowered her hands. There was a banging from inside the cabinet as the magic that had held the books was lifted. It eventually quieted and Albus and Rhyleigh looked at each other.

"What was that?" they both said at the same time. They smiled and Albus said, "Have you always been able to do that?"

"Do what?" Rhyleigh asked, confused. They both took a seat again but kept glancing at the cupboard suspiciously.

"Non-verbal magic and magic without a wand," Albus said.

"Since I can remember," Rhyleigh replied, "Is it unusual?" Albus nodded and said, "It's really rare but considering your circumstance, I can see why your magic developed that way. Most young wizards and witches don't have a need for their magic so it's not as powerful or developed as yours. Because you had to survive and protect yourself, you used magic to help you. It's amazing!" Rhyleigh looked down at her hands in wonder.

"That's why spells with a wand are harder for you," Albus rambled. His thoughts wandered on until they rested on his current problem.

"Rhyleigh, can you turn into a dog?" Albus asked bluntly. Rhyleigh nodded, "I've always been able to."

"How strange," Albus mused.

"Is that rare too?" Rhyleigh asked.

"No, it's unheard of. To be able to change into an animal willingly, you can do it willingly right?" Rhyleigh nodded, "well that's an animagus. However, that's extremely advanced magic and I don't even think your magic would've reacted in that way. How strange." Rhyleigh fidgeted uncomfortably and asked, "Is it bad to be an animagus?" Albus looked up in surprise and reminded himself that Rhyleigh wasn't aware of all the wizard terms of the world and what they meant.

"No, it's a really cool thing. An animagus is someone who can change into an animal willingly contrary to a werewolf who has no choice but to change into a creature. Animagus' can also change at any time unlike the werewolf. It's highly valued in Aurors, wizard police, and in anywhere really. But, you're supposed to register that you're an animagus so I think we should keep this to ourselves," Albus said.

"What about Scor and Tevya?" Rhyleigh asked. Albus was again reminded of her huge leap of faith that she'd taken with Scorpious and Tevya. It had created a loyalty between the four of them that Albus doubted would be broken easily.

"You could tell them if you want. They can keep a secret," Albus smiled, "So you were the dog that I said Merry Christmas to." Rhyleigh smiled and nodded at the memory.

"Thank you by the way for what you left in the hat. It helped me a lot," Rhyleigh said. Albus nodded and then looked at his watch.

"It's about time for lunch. We should head down," Albus said. They packed up their things and headed to the Great Hall.

"Albus, why do you call me by my full name?" Rhyleigh asked randomly. Albus blinked and thought about the question. Scorpious and Tevya had given her the nickname "Leigh" but it just hadn't seemed right to Albus.

"I don't know. Leigh doesn't fit you. Rhyleigh's your name and that's how I know you. Do you want me to start calling you Leigh?" Albus asked. Rhyleigh shook her head and replied, "I like it when you say my full name. Can I keep calling you by your full name?" Albus thought back and realized that Rhyleigh had always called him "Albus" instead of "Al," his childhood nickname.

"Yeah," Albus smiled. Rhyleigh smiled and they continued on to the Great Hall. Albus liked the idea of calling each other by their full names. It was like an inside joke just between the two of them. It made it special, in a sense like a nickname. Albus liked that there was something special or unique between Rhyleigh and him.


	11. Chapter 11

Weeks passed and Rhyleigh improved drastically. She had moved onto second grade books and had caught up to the class in all of the other classes. When Albus and Rhyleigh reported her progress to Headmistress McGonagall, the Headmistress told them that it was time they went back to regular classes. Albus would still tutor Rhyleigh but it would be after their core classes. The Headmistresses assured them that she'd talk to the teachers about not asking Rhyleigh to read in class. As they walked from the Headmistresses office, Albus couldn't help feeling a little sad. Of course he was happy for Rhyleigh, she wouldn't feel as different now, but he was going to miss their time together. Albus had become used to the schedule and used to Rhyleigh. Albus and Rhyleigh worked well together. He knew how to pick her up when she got discouraged and in return, Rhyleigh would help him calm down when he got angry at his brother. James was ignoring him and Albus could hear him mutter "Snake" every time they passed each other. Rhyleigh helped him think about other things and helped him to see situations in a new perspective. He was also disappointed that he had to go to class. He knew he'd be bored and that he wouldn't learn anything. But he was mostly sad that he wouldn't get as much time with Rhyleigh. Before he knew it, they'd walked back to the Slytherin common room. Rhyleigh said the password and walked in, looking for Scorpious and Tevya. Albus pointed them out in the corner by the fat man's portrait. It had become their spot despite the fat man constantly glaring at them.

"Guess what?" Rhyleigh asked excitedly. Tevya and Scorpious looked up from their homework.

"I get to come to class again!" Rhyleigh beamed. Tevya and Scorpious congratulated Rhyleigh as Rhyleigh beamed.

"Well this calls for a celebration!" Scorpious announced.

"And what better day than Halloween!" Tevya added. Wait, Halloween?

"You guys, Halloween's not for a couple more weeks," Albus commented. Tevya and Scorpious looked at Albus questioningly.

"Uh, no mate, it's today," Scorpious corrected.

"Seriously?" Albus asked. He rummaged through his bag and found a letter, which reminded him that he needed to write he parents. He couldn't remember when he'd last replied to a letter, he'd been so caught up in helping Rhyleigh and reading his books. He looked at the letter and remembered he'd received it three days ago. Albus opened the letter and looked at the date. October 29th.

"Oh," Albus said as he realized it really was Halloween. Scorpious started laughing, "The look on your face is priceless!" Tevya chuckled too but Rhyleigh just looked confused.

"Halloween?" she asked.

"Yeah you know, the holiday where you get free candy!" Scorpious said.

"And the night when all the ghosts come out to play," Tevya said eerily. Instead of laughing, Rhyleigh just looked alarmed.

"Rhyleigh do you know what Halloween is?" Albus asked quietly. She shook her head and fidgeted uncomfortably. Scorpious and Tevya had gone quiet.

"Oh well it's this day where you can dress up and go around and ask for free candy," Scorpious explained.

"It's the day where people dress up? Oh, I hate that day," Rhyleigh said. Scorpious' mouth fell open and he practically yelled, "WHAT!?" Tevya hit him in the stomach and Albus rolled his eyes.

"Why do you hate that day?" Tevya asked. He then turned to Scorpious and said, "See that's how you ask when you're confused. Not screaming to the whole world what pops into your head." Scorpious scowled and crossed his arms. Tevya motioned for Rhyleigh to continue.

"People aren't usually very nice to people like me on that day. Usually it's because they're drunk," Rhyleigh explained.

"Well, that'll just have to change," Albus said, "You'll change your mind at the Halloween feast." Rhyleigh looked skeptical.

"Speaking of the Feast, it's gonna start soon," Tevya noted. They packed their things and started walking towards the Great Hall.

"Al!" someone called. Albus turned and was assaulted by a bear hug.

"I've missed you so much! I haven't seen you in class, which is weird by the way, you're going to need to tell me why later. And when I do see you, you have your nose stuck in a book or you're way too distracted to notice me! I know we're not brother and sister but Al! You're supposed to at least say hi once in a while. I mean I'm not like James, I'm not ignoring you. Speaking of James he's being a jerk," Rose rambled. Albus chuckled and realized he'd missed Rose's babbling.

"I've missed you too," Albus smiled.

"See there's the Albus I've missed! Oh hi Scorpious and Rhyleigh! Who are you?" Rose questioned. Scorpious and Rhyleigh said hello back and Tevya said, "Hi! My names' Tevya Longhorn." Rose gasped and said, "You're the rude git in my herbology class!" Scorpious burst out laughing and Albus had to join in too. Rose always said what she was thinking, a lot like Scorpious. Rose covered her mouth and blushed in embarrassment. Tevya looked offended and stammered, "Rude git-Wha-I'm not-I'm not that rude!" Now Rhyleigh was laughing and Scorpious was crying from laughter.

"Rose, this is my good friend Tevya. Though he may have been rude to begin with, he is quite friendly once you get to know him," Albus reintroduced Tevya.

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! That was mean! I'm sorry. I just say whatever pops into my mind. I'm really sorry," Rose apologized. Tevya sighed and replied, "It's fine, I was a right git to begin with." Someone called Rose's name and she said goodbye, apologizing again.

"Your cousin's hilarious, Al!" Scorpious wheezed, wiping tears away. Albus chuckled.

"Yeah, she reminds me of you," Tevya said.

"What, how's that?" Scorpious asked.

"You both don't have a filter on your mouth," Tevya accused. Scorpious looked offended until Tevya smiled impishly.

"Oh I'll get you for that," Scorpious threatened. He chased Tevya into the Great Hall and Albus and Rhyleigh didn't catch up with them until they saw them at their table. The Feast was delicious. There were mounds of food and everyone was in a good mood. The ghosts kept popping up in people's plates scaring people out of their wits. At one point Rhyleigh turned to Albus and said, "You're right. Halloween is the best." The Headmistress announced that each student could take back one dessert to their common room and was met with an excited cheer. Albus took a chocolate cake, Rhyleigh took a slice of pumpkin pie, Scorpious took a bowl of pudding, and Tevya took a bowl of j-ello. They ate their desserts on the way back to the Slytherin common room and just as they were turning a corner, Albus screamed. In front of him was a huge jack-in-the-box. It had a clown like face and was waving back and forth. A couple of others screamed too but unfortunately, Albus had been the loudest. And he had screamed like a girl. Albus heard laughter behind him and turned around. James was bent over from laughter as were his friends Alex and Vander. Albus could hear the people around him laughing and his face burned in embarrassment.

"I can't believe you screamed like a little girl," James gasped. Albus felt humiliated and he could feel tears stinging his eyes. James knew he hated those toys. When he was younger, he'd gotten one as a present and had screamed at the site of it. It had taken his mother an hour to coax him out of his hiding place.

"What, you going to cry like a girl now?" James taunted. Albus's face burned even more and James smiled. Suddenly, Albus could feel the anger bubbling in his stomach and before he could suppress it, it exploded.

"Oh do you want me to tell everyone what you're afraid of, Jane?" Albus shot back. James' scowled at the childhood nickname.

"You wouldn't dare," James challenged. Albus felt someone put a hand on his arm but he shook it off. James wanted to play with humiliation, Albus could shoot it right back at him.

"James Sirius Potter is afraid of bunny rabbits," Albus announced. James' face grew pale as laughter erupted around them. Albus felt excitement as he watched James' face redden.

"I am not," James retorted. A small voice inside Albus told him to stop now but he ignored it.

"Really? Because last Easter, when we visited Uncle Dudley, you nearly wet your pants when you saw Daffodil's pet bunny," Albus taunted. The crowd that had gathered erupted in laughter and James' face turned from embarrassment to humiliation. As soon as Albus had said it, he felt guilty and wanted to take it back. A small part of him crowed at the victory he'd won but it was quickly smothered when Albus saw James' face. It was murderous. Before he could think of what to do, James whipped out his wand and a jet of water blasted Albus in the face. Albus was knocked back from the force of it and fell flat on his back. He tried to get up but slipped and fell on his face. Laughter filled Albus' ears. Albus' glasses broke and he felt his nose start to bleed. He reached for his wand but before he could touch it a voice said, "ENOUGH!" A Slytherin prefect pushed through the crowd of students.

"Everyone, go back to your common rooms before I take points from all of you!" he roared. He was tall and had jet black hair. His nostrils were flared and he looked quite intimidating. The crowd quickly dispersed and James left without a glance backwards. Albus got up, slowly this time, and turned towards his friends. Scorpious looked furious as did Tevya. They both were putting their wands away. Rhyleigh looked sad and shaken. The prefect looked at Albus and, deciding that he'd seen enough humiliation, shook his head and stormed off.

"What the hell!? That was just-" Scorpious started.

"Shut up, Scor," Albus muttered. Scorpious looked shocked as did Tevya. Albus turned away and started stalking back towards the common room.

"Hey, Al, I was just saying-" Scorpious started again.

"I don't want to know what you were just saying, alright?" Albus shot back. Anger and humiliation were burning in his stomach. He couldn't seem to calm down.

"Al, you have no right to act like this towards us," Tevya said.

"No right?" Albus asked incredulously.

"Yeah! We're your friends! Stop acting like a git!" Tevya shouted.

"You're one to talk," Albus said. Tevya opened his mouth to say something else but Rhyleigh yelled, "STOP! All of you!" Albus turned away from them and started running. He heard shouts behind him but he couldn't stop. He could feel the sob rising in his chest and he had to get away. He found himself running up the Astronomy tower and bursting onto the roof. The wind whistled through his hair and the air bit coldly at his skin. No one was on the roof. He closed the door behind him and locked it. Alone, he let the sob escape. He was humiliated. Not only had his friends seen him scream like a little girl but half the school had as well. Half the school? a voice asked. Ok, that was exaggerated but there were a lot of people. Plus, guilt was also gnawing at his insides. He shouldn't have said James' fear. Two wrongs didn't make a right. He was a terrible person. So was James, the anger inside of him said. Albus wiped his eyes and looked up. The stars were out and he could see the different constellations. Lily would really like this view, Albus thought.

"You know your nose is still bleeding," Rhyleigh said. Albus jumped at the sound and turned towards Rhyleigh. It wasn't just Rhyleigh on the roof, Scorpious and Tevya were there too.

"H-how did you guys-"

"You taught me the unlocking spell," Rhyleigh explained. She had her arms crossed and her eyebrow cocked. Albus sighed and looked at his feet.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you guys. I was angry and just.." Albus tapered off. Rhyleigh knelt next to him and said, "Let me see your face." Albus looked up and Rhyleigh inspected his nose. She handed him a hankerchief and announced, "It's not broken but it'll probably hurt for a while." Albus nodded and then chanced a look at Scorpious and Tevya. They both looked angry and Albus went to apologize again but Scorpious reacted faster. He punched Albus in the arm.

"That's what you get for yelling at your mates," Scorpious stated matter-of-factly. Albus rubbed his arm and said, "I deserved that." Scorpious nodded and then sat next to Albus.

"You're not the only one who's afraid of a toy. I hate baby dolls," Scorpious admitted. Albus looked at Scorpious surprised.

"Azalea had them when she was younger and they just look so creepy," Scorpious shivered.

"I hate moths," Tevya stated. Scorpious, Albus, and Rhyleigh turned towards Tevya. He had his arms crossed and was looking at the forest. He turned back and finding them staring at him said, "What?"

"That's just a strange fear to have," Scorpious said.

"Well so is the fear of baby dolls," Tevya retorted. Scorpious opened his mouth to retort but then nodded in agreement.

"I'm afraid of beetles," Rhyleigh said, "The way they scuttle around, creeps me out." Albus looked at each of his friends, amazed.

"Thank you," Albus said. It was all he could think to say. They all nodded and stared out across the grounds. They stayed silent and just took in the night until Albus sneezed.

"Ow," Albus groaned massaging his nose.

"We should go inside," Rhyleigh said. They all trooped back inside and snuck back to the common room. They said goodnight to each other and headed up to their rooms. Scorpious and Albus tiptoed into their room and changed into their pajamas.

"Oh before I forget," Scorpious whispered. He pointed his wand in Albus' face and said, "Reparo." Albus' glasses fixed themselves and he adjusted them on his head.

"Thanks," Albus said. Scorpious gave him a thumbs up and replied, "Anytime, mate." They got into bed and soon, Albus heard Scorpious snoring. Albus smiled to himself and fell into a deep sleep.


	12. Chapter 12

For the next week, Albus had a terrible cold. It was extremely frustrating in class because he'd sneeze, disrupt the class, and the teachers would glare at him. Not that they didn't glare at him enough. The classes were boring so Albus would either read a book or fall asleep. The teachers hated both of those alternatives but Albus couldn't help it. His cold plus his relationship with his brother were making Albus miserable. James and Albus' relationship had gotten a lot worse. In addition to being called "snake," James had other Gryffindors put snakes in Albus' bag. One time, James enchanted Albus' quill to turn into a snake every time he tried to write with it. James also got his friends to bully Albus. They would push him in the halls, push his books out of his hands, or trip him in the hallways. Albus was fed up and numerous times he turned around to tell them off but Rhyleigh was always there to hold him back. Even though they didn't have the same one-on-one time together, Albus and Rhyleigh were still very close. Their tutoring sessions were going well and Rhyleigh was at the same level as her peers. They had created a system to help her keep up with the class and still practice reading and writing. During their tutoring sessions, they would go to their private classroom and both open up their books. Albus would read aloud and Rhyleigh would read along with him. At the end, they would talk about the subject and Albus would help Rhyleigh with her homework. If they still had time after that, Rhyleigh would read some of the books the Headmistress had provided. At times, Scorpious and Tevya would come in and help as well. They would help with spells, potions, and defense against the dark arts. Usually when they helped, the group would end up on the floor laughing at each other's different hair color or some new appendage. Albus also got back to his parents. He wrote them a long letter apoplogizing for not writing sooner and explaining what he'd been up to. He told them that James and him weren't getting along but didn't go into detail. Albus might've been mad at James but he wasn't a tattle-tail. He'd never hear the end of it if he did that, plus he was also in the wrong. His parents wrote back that they were disappointed they weren't getting along and that they'd be talking to them when they got back for Christmas break. After that, James and his friends bullying got worse. It was because of this bullying that Albus later reflected, helped him decide who he'd become. It was two weeks before Christmas break and everyone was in a festive mood. Albus was walking back from Defense Against the Dark Arts when Vander "bumped" into him.

"Watch it snake," he jeered. Albus ignored him and kept on walking.

"Where ya going? You think you're better than us?" Alex questioned. He'd come up on the side of Albus and had stopped him.

"I'm going to class," Albus mumbled. Vander and Alex looked at each other and smiled.

"No you're not," they said in unison. Alex smacked Albus' books out of his hand. Albus bent to retrieve it but Vander pushed him back. Albus landed hard on his rump and glared up at the two boys. Alex had picked up the book and was holding it like it was some sort of trash.

"I can't believe you read this trash," Alex taunted. It was his first year potions book. Albus got up and said, "Give it back." Alex and Vander sneered and tossed the book between themselves. Albus could feel the anger bubbling but he tried to suppress it.

"What's the magic word?" Vander teased. Albus sighed and said, "Please, give it back." Alex, who had the book, touched his finger to his chin like he was thinking.

"Mmmmm, no. PEEVES! Catch!" Alex yelled. Albus looked up as Alex through the book. Out of nowhere Peeves came through the wall, snatched the book, and floated away laughing maniacally. Albus turned towards the two boys, furious. They were laughing hysterically and Albus opened his mouth to yell them.

"MR. POTTER!" all three of the boys froze at the shout. Albus turned around to see his Defense Against the Dark Arts Teacher, Professor Alden, striding towards them. Albus heard Alex and Vander curse and run down the corridor. Albus clenched his fists, angry that the bully's had gotten away and that he was probably getting in trouble.

"Follow me," Professor Alden demanded. Albus gather up the rest of his stuff and followed his professor.

"Peeves, give the boy back his book," Professor Alden said towards Peeves who was hiding behind the wall. Peeves stuck out his tongue then threw the book at Albus. The book hit Albus squarely in the face and Peeves laughed gleefully. Albus rubbed his sore nose and sent a glare towards Peeves.

"Oh wee little Potter's glaring at me. I'm so scared," Peeves said in a high pitched voice. He cackled and then floated off. Professor Alden was already in his classroom when Albus entered.

"Albus, you fell asleep in my class today," Professor Alden announced. Albus sighed and said, "Professor, I'm sorry. It won't happen again."

"But it will, won't it?" Professor Alden questioned. Albus didn't say anything because it was true. Professor Alden nodded and turned towards a bookshelf behind his desk.

"Well, let me ask you the standard questions. Are you staying up all night?" Professor Alden looked at two books, put one back and the other on his desk.

"No, sir," Albus replied. He looked around the room and admired the organized chaos. Professor Alden had decorated the room so that at first glance it looked like it was full of junk. However, on closer inspection, everything was labeled and if a student moved one thing, Professor Alden knew. He was a great teacher and usually kept Albus entertained even though he knew everything the Professor was teaching. Today had just been a particularly boring day and Albus had fallen asleep.

"Do your parents abuse you?" at Albus' shocked and outraged look said, "Didn't think so. Are you abusing yourself?" Albus was speechless. How could this professor ask him questions like this?

"I'm going to assume from your silence that the answer to that question is no?" Professor Alden asked still looking at different books.

"Yes! I mean no, I don't abuse myself," Albus said.

"Good, then that just means you're bored," Professor Alden said matter-of-factly. Albus was getting frustrated and angrier.

"Professor, if you're done asking questions can I go to my next class?" Albus asked, barely keeping hold of his temper.

"Not quite," Professor Alden said scanning the bookshelf, "Ah! Here it is!" He pulled a book out and set it on the large stack in front of his desk. He fell into his chair with a sigh and motioned for Albus to sit in one of the desks. Albus sat down and thumped his books on the desk angrily.

"I know you're mad at your brother but don't take it out on me," Professer Alden chuckled. Albus sighed and mumbled, "Sorry."

"Look, I know it's not been easy for you especially now with your brother acting like a git," Albus looked up in surprise. "First you were put into Slytherin which I can guess wasn't your fist choice, then your brother turns against you, and on top of that you hate class because it's boring." Albus stared at his Professor in wonder, he was the first to actually see what Albus had been going through. The professor laughed at Albus' expression and said, "So I'm going to propose a project for you." He thumped his hand on the stack of books. "You are going to read each of these books and write an essay after each of them explaining why you like them or don't like them. This will be added on top of your school work but I doubt you'll have a big problem with that. After you've read and written all of your essays, choose the subject you are most interested in and I will personally teach you that subject." Albus' jaw dropped in shock. Professor Alden smiled and said, "Well? Do you accept the challenge?"

"Absolutely!" Albus cried. He grinned and looked at the stack of books on the professor's desk. There were at least ten thick books and Albus loved the sight of them. Looking at them, Albus was itching to open one and dive into its contents.

"Then it's settled. You'll read these books and hopefully not be bored in class. Try to read and write discreetly. The other professors get really offended when you fall asleep or read something else in their class," Professor Alden said. Albus nodded and said, "Thank you!" Professor Alden smiled and said, "Go and get to class. I'll send these books up to your room, you can start tomorrow." Albus thanked him again and ran off to class. As Albus skidded into the classroom, barely making it on time, he had a feeling that he wouldn't be so bored anymore.

* * *

**Sorry if this is shorter! I'm trying to at least write once a day for at least an hour but right now it's 1:09 and I should really get to better. There will be some more action coming up soon! Please review and tell me what you think! Oh and I've been thinking of, after this one scene (coming soon), I was going to fastforward to summer and then to second year. What do you think? Should I move kinda fast or would you rather I take more time with each year? Let me know what you think! Thank you for reading! XD It makes me so happy! :D**


	13. Chapter 13

Albus' last two weeks before Christmas break flew by and before he knew it, it was time to board the train home.

"Are you sure you won't stay at the castle?" Albus asked Rhyleigh. Scorpious, Tevya, and Albus had assumed that Rhyleigh would stay at the castle for the holidays but she had informed them that she would be leaving to go "home." They had tried to convince her to stay but she insisted on going saying "she needed to make some money and the holiday always brought in a lot." She explained that her violin playing was how she survived. People would give her money, like Albus did last Christmas, and she'd use that for food.

"I'm positive Albus. I'll be alright," Rhyleigh chuckled, "Is your family coming to Hogsmeade again this year?" Albus nodded and Scorpious said, "Hogsmeade?"

"Yeah, my family goes each year for last minute Christmas shopping but it's usually for my brother and dad since they're either too busy or wait too long," Albus explained.

"My family goes down to Hogsmeade each Christmas to visit with a family friend. I hate it," Scorpious said.

"Hey we could try and meet up and relieve our boredom," Albus suggested. Scorpious agreed eagerly. Apparently they visited a distant aunt and she always pinched Scopious' cheeks and he hated her small, loud dog. They discussed their Christmas plans and tried to find a way for Tevya to join them. The train ride was filled with laughter and jokes. It was over quickly and they got their luggage down.

"Well, see you guys around," Rhyleigh said. All she had was her backpack and a small suitcase. She waved to them and hopped off the train. The boys shuffled out of the train and stepped out onto the platform.

"Tevya? Is that you?" a woman asked. She was short but skinny and had long, brown, wavy hair.

"Hey mum," Tevya replied giving her a hug. Tevya's mum held on to him murmuring, "My sweet boy! Oh how I missed you!" Tevya mumbled something back and she smiled.

"So are these your friends?" she asked pulling away. Tevya introduced Scorpious and Albus and told her that he had another friend but she'd already left.

"Well, I'm so glad to meet you and know that my Tevya made some friends," Tevya rolled his eyes, "We'll have to have you boys over for a playdate or something."

"Mum! I'm eleven, I don't have playdates!" Tevya exclaimed blushing a bright red.

"Oh I'm sorry dear," she apoplogized, "Well, we'll have to have you over for a…a…"

"We'd be happy to hang out with Tevya, Mrs. Longhorn," Albus laughed. She smiled, relieved. Tevya waved goodbye and he and his mom disappeared into the crowd.

"Well, until Hogsmeade," Scorpious said, slapping Albus on the back.

"See ya," Albus waved. Scorpious joined his family and Albus got a glimpse of his sister, Azalea. She had her mother's hair and her father's eyes.

"Albus!" he heard his father call. He turned and was enveloped in a tiny hug.

"Hey Lily!" Albus said, hugging his sister.

"I missed you! It was no fun with you gone. I was super bored," Lily exclaimed dramatically. Albus laughed and joined the rest of his family. Albus hugged his father and mother.

"So, are you enjoying school?" Harry asked his youngest son.

"Yeah, but the classes are boring," Albus said with a shrug. Harry ruffled his son's hair and said, "We're going to have a talk about the train, Theodore, and not writing to us." Albus sighed and nodded.

"Oh here's James," Ginny said waving to her eldest son. James swung Lily around in a hug and then gave a hug to his parents. He completely ignored Albus.

"So, we going home or what?" James asked looking to his parents. Harry and Ginny shared a look, noticing their son's behavior. Harry sighed and knew it might be a long holiday. They all got into the car and headed home.

"James! Stop setting off dungbombs in your brother's room!" Ginny shouted at her eldest. James just laughed, grabbed a piece of toast, and ran out the door. Ginny sighed in exasperation. The boys had never acted this hostile to each other. Albus trudged down the stairs and his mother gave him a sympathetic expression.

"Eew, Albus! Did James do it again?" Lily asked pinching her nose. Albus grunted in reply and went back up the stairs.

"I'll get the smell out in a minute sweetie!" Ginny called after Albus, "Just like I did yesterday and they day before that." Ginny went back to flipping pancakes and served Lily some orange juice. Albus went into his room, found a clean shirt and pants, and went to take a shower. The shower felt nice and got rid of the awful dungbomb smell. As he was putting his shirt on, Albus looked in the mirror and stared in horror. Glaring him in the face was bright, bubblegum pink hair. Albus snatched the shampoo bottle and smelled a faint odor of hair-color-changing potion. Albus cursed and stormed out of the bathroom.

"Where's James?" Albus demanded. Ginny and Lily looked up to see a red faced Albus with bright pink hair.

"Oh sweetie," Ginny said, getting up from where she was sitting, "Potion in the shampoo bottle?" Albus could barely nod he was so angry. His fists were clenched, his fingernails digging painfully into his skin.

"I don't understand what happened between you two," Ginny mumbled, running her hand through Albus' hair. "I'll start working on a potion to fix this and then fix your room ok?" Albus shook his head and said, "I'll make the potion but can you please fix my room?"

"Albus that's probably a third year potion," his mum said.

"Mum, I can do it," Albus said. Ginny sighed and nodded. Albus sat down at the table and angrily ate five pancakes.

"In case it helps, you look good in pink," Lily commented. Albus scoffed and wolfed down some orange juice.

"I'm going upstairs to the attic to start the potion," Albus announced. He climbed the stairs grabbing the family potions book from the bookshelf on his way up. As he was climbing he passed Sirius' room and Regulus' room. The Potter family had debated between Godric's Hollow and Grimmauld Place to settle down and live due to their importance to Harry. Ultimately, they decided on Grimmauld Place because it held so many fond memories for Harry of the ones he'd loved and lost. Albus climbed two more flights of stairs and then lifted the trap door to the attic. Although Grimmauld Place looked ordinary it was magically bigger on the inside. Molly and Arthur Weasley had helped expand when Harry and Ginny had more than one kid. Albus lifted himself into the attic and sighed. This was his favorite place. A round circular window shined light into the dusty, unused room. There was a blanket and pillow there that Albus had put there to make it more comfortable. Albus loved the dusty, old smell the attic held. That might be weird to most but to Albus, it just seemed like the attic held so much history it was beguiling. Albus placed the potions book on the blanket and went searching for a cauldron. He found an old rusty one under some old clothes and set it on the blanket as well. He scanned the potions book for the right potion and then memorized the ingredients he needed.

"Kreacher!" Albus called. A moment later, Kreacher, their old family house elf, popped next to Albus.

"What can Kreacher get you young master Albus?" Kreacher croaked. Albus listed off the ingredients and Kreacher apparated out with a pop. While Kreacher was looking for the ingredients Albus explored the attic. Distracting himself was the best way to keep his mind off the anger that was building towards James. He had set off dungbombs in Albus' room for the past three days, snuck a puking pasty in his mashed potatoes, and a tongue lengthener in his soup. His parents had tried to talk to them about what had happened but James just said that Albus was being a prick at school and needed to be taught a lesson. Albus wanted to mention how prejudiced James was being but didn't want attract anymore of James' wrath. To top it all off, Albus hadn't received one letter from his friends. Albus had sent a letter each day to his friends but had gotten no response. He'd sent a letter to Rhyleigh but hadn't really expected a letter back, but he was really hurt by Scorpious and Tevya's silence. Albus sighed at the thought and rifled through some boxes. He found some old heavily bound books covered with dust and a few spiders crawling around in the box. Albus lifted the top one off and blew the dust off. The title read "Healing Spells." There was no date so Albus had no idea how old it was. Intrigued, he opened the book and was lost in its context. There were pictures of ligaments, muscles, and bones. A little farther on there were depictions of certain diseases; ones with pussing sores or blistering fingers. Even farther in the book were ways on how to amputate or reattach limbs. Albus was fascinated and stayed engrossed in the book even after Kreacher apparated back with the supplies.

"Young master Albus? Young Master Albus!" Kreacher cried. Albus jumped in surprise.

"Kreacher! Oh you got the ingredients? Thank you!" Albus said. Kreacher nodded happily and apparated out of the attic. Albus put down the book and began working on the potion. In no time, it was finished and Albus double checked the color and smell before drinking it. It tasted like conditioner and Albus gagged. He felt a tingling sensation in his hair. He looked around the room for a mirror and upon finding one looked to see if the potion had worked. His hair was slowly turning back to black from the roots first. Albus sighed and realized he'd probably have to have this hair color for the rest of the day and probably most of tomorrow. He put away the potions stuff, grabbed the healing book, and sat by the window. He read the book for hours and didn't hear his father call up for him.

"Albus?" Harry asked, poking his head into the attic. He saw his son sitting by the window reading a thick book. He sighed when he saw his son's pink hair. Harry lifted himself into the attic and made his way over to his son.

"Al?" Harry asked again. This time his son looked up in surprise and said, "Oh hi dad! I didn't hear you come home."

"I was calling for you," Harry choked. Albus blushed and said, "Sorry." Harry ruffled his son's hair and said, "I'm sorry about this. I'm going to scold James when he gets back. He was never like this before, what happened?" Albus looked at his dad, on the verge of telling him everything, but sighed. Albus knew his father was disappointed in both him and James because of the way they were acting. Albus didn't want to make it worse for James unless absolutely necessary. A part of Albus was hoping James would get over it and stop bullying him, but the other part knew that wasn't really going to happen.

"I don't know dad. I guess we just grew apart," Albus mumbled. Harry sighed at his son and knew that wasn't the real reason. Albus was most likely feeling guilty about something he'd said to James and felt entitled to protect his older brother.

"Alright, you know eventually the truth is going to come out," Harry said trying to prompt his son to give him the truth. Albus stayed silent. Harry sighed and said, "Let's go get some dinner." Albus nodded and set his book down in his place. Harry waved his wand and the cold potion was vanished into thin air. Father and son went down to dinner, not knowing what the next night would bring.


	14. Chapter 14

The next day was Christmas Eve and, as usual, they headed off to Hogsmeade for last minute shopping. Albus only had to get one thing but the his dad and James had lots to get apparently. Albus walked back to their room in The Three Broomsticks. The Potter's always got a room for one night so that when a person was done shopping they could wrap the presents unseen by their family members. They always rented the best room, unless it was taken, and Albus was beginning to realize that they rented the room for different reasons than he was told. If Albus had to guess, they rented the room to help out the inn's business. Albus wrapped his one present and then sat down with a book from Professor Alden by the fire. He'd already finished five of the books. He hadn't really enjoyed any of them. He was now reading "The Art of Herbology" and he was really bored. But, dutifully, he continued reading the book and writing notes on what he thought. He didn't know how long he worked on it but eventually the rest of his family trickled in. Ginny and Lily came in with a few bags and went to the bedroom giggling about something. Harry and James were next a few later. They staggered under the weight of their gifts into the bedroom that unoccupied and stayed in there, wrapping presents until Ginny called for dinner. Madam Rosmerta and a waitress came up with steaming plates of food. Albus' parents thanked them and Madam Rosmerta beamed. The Potter family dug in and for a few minutes all you could hear was the scraping of forks on plates. Harry started some small talk and for a while it seemed like nothing was wrong. At a closer look, James and Albus still weren't talking to each or even looking at each other. When everyone was done Harry sighed, "Ok, this needs to end tonight. James, Albus what is going on?" James glared at Albus and Albus looked down at his plate. Ginny collected the plates and Lily got up to help her.

"We're not leaving this room until you boys tell me why you're avoiding each other," Harry said in his most stern voice. Albus seemed to flinch at the threat but didn't say anything. James just sat back and glared at his brother.

"James, stop glaring at Albus!" Ginny scolded. James scoffed but did as he was told and looked at his father.

"Maybe Albus is the problem," James said with a sneer. Harry's mood grew darker by the look on James face and, knowing he might regret this later, said, "Why would that be?"

"Look at him! Thinking he's so high and mighty because he can read a big book," James said, "I mean, even his friends are sick of him because they're not returning his letters." Albus got up from the table and brought his dish over to his mother angrily. It hurt that his friends hadn't responded but what hurt more was that James was using it against him. Suddenly, Albus froze. How did James know he wasn't getting letters? He hadn't told anyone about not receiving letters from his friends, not even his parents. As the realization hit him, his anger exploded.

"You slimy git!" Albus shouted at James. Harry's head snapped up towards his son at his tone of voice. Albus looked furious. He had his hands clenched and nostrils flared. Harry had rarely seen his youngest son's temper but when he did see it, it was explosive.

"What?" James challenged, getting up from his chair.

"You stole my letters! How dare you!" Albus yelled. James' face paled slightly as he realized he'd given himself away.

"What are you talking ab-"

"I didn't tell anyone I wasn't receiving letters, you prat! How dare you!" Albus could feel himself getting angrier by the minute and he couldn't stop himself. James had the decency to look slightly ashamed and a little afraid, as he saw his brother's furious glare.

"I've had it, James! I've had it with your prejudiced thinking and whispered remarks! I am in Slytherin! Get that through your thick skull! The hat did not make a mistake, I am not going to change houses! I am proud of the house I'm in and proud to be a Slytherin! That doesn't give you the right to call me 'snake' or trip me in the halls or expose my greatest fear! You are a pompous prick and I'm glad I'm not in the same house as you! I was going to apologize for the Halloween incident but now, you deserved every bit of that humiliation, you arsehole!" Albus nearly screamed. Before anyone could stop him, he rushed out of the room, down the stairs, and outside. He was so angry, infuriated. James had gone too far this time. Albus wasn't really watching where he was going, but when he looked up he realized he'd run into the forest. He looked around at the tall, snow-covered trees. He stood there for awhile just catching his breath when he heard a sound to his right. He turned towards it and heard it again. Laughter. He slowly made his way to the sound and soon found himself in a clearing. In the middle of the clearing was Scorpious, Tevya, and Rhyleigh making snow angels.

"Hey! Look who decided to show up!" Scorpious cried with a smile.

"Al!"

"Albus!" Albus couldn't help but smile as his friends surrounded him. He could feel his anger slowly ebbing away with the cold winter air.

"Hey so why didn't you return our letters?" Scorpious asked bluntly.

"James stole them so I thought you guys were ignoring me or something," Albus admitted.

"What? James needs to get a life," Tevya commented. Albus laughed and let go of the rest of his anger. The four friends walked through the forest chatting about their winter breaks and how different it felt to be home or working, in Rhyleigh's case. They laughed and wrestled, throwing snow at each other and just having fun.

"Hey, you guys want to go sledding?" Tevya asked excited. Scorpious, Albus, and Rhyleigh looked at him in confusion.

"What? You seriously don't know what sledding is?" Tevya questioned. They shook their heads and Tevya laughed.

"Alright, so this," motioning to a piece of plastic he'd been carrying, "is called a sled. You take it on a hill of snow and ride on it to the bottom. It's the most fun you will ever have, guaranteed!" Albus looked at the sled skeptically. You were supposed to ride down a hill covered in snow on a piece of plastic?

"Let's try it!" Scorpious cried, excited. Tevya showed them to a hill that overlooked one of the streets of Hogsmeade.

"I've been wanting to try this hill all day! This is going to be awesome!" Tevya set down the sled and sat in the front. He directed Scorpious to sit behind him, Albus behind Scopious, and Rhyleigh last.

"Everybody in?" Tevya asked. Albus could feel the sled wanting to move and felt his heartbeat quicken.

"Yes!" they all answered. Tevya lifted his feet and they were off. They flew down the snowbank and they all screamed in excitement. It was exhilarating to fly down the hill with the wind whipping you in the face. Rhyleigh was hugging Albus tightly while Albus held onto the sides for dear life. Suddenly, Albus saw a problem. The end of the hill was approaching but Albus didn't see how they'd stop, they were going really fast.

"Tevya!" Albus shouted, "How does it stop?"

"Easy! You just put your hands down, like brakes," Tevya demonstrated this but nothing happened, "Um…that usually works." Tevya tried it again and then Albus joined him. The sled slowed slightly but it wasn't stopping.

"Tevya, make it stop!" Scorpious shouted.

"I'm trying!" Tevya yelled back.

"You guys look!" Rhyleigh cried. They looked up and saw that they had passed the bottom of the hill and were heading straight towards the street. They all screamed in terror and held on for dear life. They rocketed past the first shops and started heading towards the shops on the other side of the street.

"LEAN TO THE RIGHT!" Tevya shouted. They all leaned and the sled swung the other way. However, they leaned too much and started spinning in circles. The four screamed as they lost control of the sled. Albus thought he heard adults shouting after them but he couldn't tell, he was spinning so fast. Albus saw a snowbank and before he could shout a warning they crashed into the snow, each of them flying in different directions. For a moment it was silent and then Scorpoius whooped, "Yeah! Let's do it again!" They all cracked up laughing and Albus realized, even though it was terrifying, it was the most fun he'd had in a long time. Albus got up and adjusted his glasses, watching Scorpious and Tevya have a snowball fight.

"Scoprious Hyperion Malfoy!" someone shouted. Scorpious froze then slowly turned towards the voice. Albus looked too and what he saw made him freeze, too. Draco and Astoria had their arms crossed whereas Azalea had her mouth covered, giggling. Harry and Ginny were looking at Albus in shock as were James and Lily. The only one missing was Tevya's mum.

"um, hi dad," Scopious waved slightly. Draco had his arms crossed tightly and was tapping his foot in annoyance.

"What do you think you're doing?" Draco demanded. Scorpious looked around and said, "Sledding." Albus tried to choke back the laugh that threatened to escape as he looked at his friend's father. Draco gave Scorpious the that's-not-the-answer-I-wanted stare. Scorpious looked pleadingly at his friends and then back to his father.

"Sledding…in the snow?" Scorpious ventured. Albus couldn't contain it any longer and burst out laughing. Apparently he wasn't the only one. Tevya and Rhleigh were shaking with laughter and Astoria was covering her mouth, trying to suppress her laugh. Draco sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Tevya Robert Longhorn! What did I tell you about sledding at night?" Tevya's mum came striding down the street with her hands on her hips. Albus got a vague recollection of his grandmother by looking at Tevya's mum.

"Mum-I-" Tevya stammered, paling.

"Did you crash? How did you end up on the street?" she looked around, saw the big hill and growled, "Did you go down the hill I specifically told you not to go down?" Tevya seemed to shrink under his mother's gaze and just nodded. His mother's eyes blazed and she was about to drill into him when Rhyleigh piped up, "Mrs. Longhorn, it wasn't all Tevya's fault." Tevya's mum looked at Rhyleigh then at everyone around her son, realizing for the first time that they weren't alone.

"We've never gone sledding and he wanted to show us what it was like. No one got hurt and we had a lot of fun! Right?" Rhyleigh asked. Scorpious whooped "Yes!" and Albus laughed, "Best fun I've had in a long time!" Tevya smiled gratefully at his friends and his mother's gaze softened.

"Well, I'm glad you had a good time with your friends but that doesn't mean you get out of punishment," she scolded. Tevya nodded and accepted his fate without argument. There was a bit of uncomfortable silence in which the parents didn't know if they should scold their kids or introduce each other.

"I'm sorry. My name is Gloria Longhorn, Tevya's mother," Gloria said turning to the parents.

"It's very nice to meet you, Gloria. My name's Ginny Potter and this is my husband Harry Potter. We are the parents of Albus Potter," Ginny introduced her family. Gloria shook both Ginny's and Harry's hands and then asked, "And these are siblings?"

"Hello Mrs. Longhorn. I'm Lily and this is James. I'm the youngest," Lily announced, sticking out her hand. James mumbled a hello and looked at the ground.

"Well it is very nice to meet you," Gloria replied, shaking Lily's hand. Lily shoved James but before he could offer his hand Astoria Malfoy stepped forward.

"Gloria, my name is Astoria Malfoy and this is my husband Draco, you already know Scorpious, and my daughter Azalea," she introduced, shaking Gloria's hand. Draco stepped forward and shook hands, as did Azalea.

"Tevya, which one is the friend I didn't meet at the train station?" Gloria asked Tevya.

"Oh that would be Rhyleigh," Tevya said, pointing to Rhyleigh. Rhyleigh stepped forward and said, "It's very nice to meet you Mrs. Longhorn. I'm Rhyleigh." They shook hands and Gloria looked around.

"My parents are working right now," Rhyleigh piped up, avoiding the question that was on Gloria's lips. Gloria nodded understanding.

"Well, it's been a pleasure meeting everyone, but Tevya and I really should be going home. Scorpious, Albus, and Rhyleigh you are welcome to come and, what was the phrase you said, hang out, that's it! You are welcome to as long as your parents give you permission," Gloria said, much to the embarrassment of Tevya. The two waved and walked away. More silence, Albus fidgeted, not quite sure what to do.

"Well, Scorpious and Rhyleigh, it is very nice to meet you for the first time," Ginny began, "Now, I understand this may be awkward but I need you to tell me how my sons have been acting and I need the truth." James looked at his mother horrified. He opened his mouth to protest but Ginny held up her hand and gave him a glare. James shut his mouth and looked at the ground, wishing it would swallow him whole. Scorpious, Rhyleigh, and Albus shared a look. Albus sighed and shrugged.

"Well, Mrs. Potter, to be honest, he hasn't been the best brother," Scorpious said nervously. Draco and Astoria inhaled sharply but Scorpious continued, "He's been calling Albus a snake for most of the year. It got worse after Halloween. He started putting snakes in Albus' school bag or enchanting is quill to become a snake. He also got other Gryffindors to do it. He keeps telling Albus the hat made a mistake and that he should be in Gryffindor. But the thing is he isn't a Gryffindor, he's a Slytherin. And that's not a bad thing. We talked to Severus Snape about what it took to be a Slytherin and he said the attributes were ambition, cunning, and resourcefulness. Well I'd say Albus is pretty ambitious because he's read our school books I don't know how many times. He's the top in every class even though he falls asleep. And the only reason he falls asleep is because he's bored. So I don't know what James' problem is but I think Albus is a good guy, a great friend." Scorpious smiled and Albus grinned back. There was a moment of stunned silence. Harry and Ginny turned to their eldest son who was blushing from embarrassment.

"Look, so maybe I was over the top a little bit but Albus needed to learn not to be a snob. Just because he's top of the class, doesn't mean he's better than anyone else and that's what he portrayed," James defended himself. Albus sighed and wished James would just accept he might've done something wrong.

"Careful James, that pride could land you in Slytherin," Rhyleigh said coolly. James paled and stepped back. Albus turned to Rhyleigh in shock and was surprised by what he saw. Instead of the shy girl he'd become accustomed to, standing before him was a confident girl with her arms crossed fixing James with an icy stare. Rhyleigh took a deep breath and said, "It was nice to meet you Mr. and Mrs. Potter, Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy, James, Lily, Azalea. I apologize for leaving so abruptly but I hadn't realized the time and should get going. Scorpious, Albus, it was good to see you again. Merry Christmas!" She passed by gracefully and waved goodbye.

"Merry Christmas!" Albus and Scorpious chorused. Scorpious was trying really hard not to smile and Albus found he was having similar trouble. Rhyleigh turned back, out of site of the parents, and gave Albus a look. Albus then truly smiled and accepted what he had to do. James and him were stubborn but at some point someone had to give in.

"James, I'm sorry I told everyone your fear. It was wrong and I shouldn't have done that. I'm also sorry for the early words I used to describe you. They weren't true," Albus apologized. James looked at him in surprise as did the rest of the family. Before James could respond, Albus turned towards the Malfoys and said, "It's nice to meet you Mr. and Mrs Malfoy. You too, Azalea. Scor's been a great friend and I'm glad I met him on the train that day." Astoria smiled and the sweet boy in front of her and said, "Scor is lucky to have a friend like you too."

"Well, it really is late and we should also be going," Astoria announced turning to Harry and Ginny, "It was lovely to see you tonight. You have such beautiful children."

"Thank you Astoria. You have very attractive children yourself," Ginny replied shaking Astoria's outstretched hand, "Goodnight." Astoria smiled and started walking away with Azalea trailing behind. Draco nodded towards Harry and Ginny and followed his wife.

"See ya at school Al!" Scorpious said, slapping him on the back.

"See ya," Albus smiled, waving. The Malfoy family disappeared into the dark and Albus turned back to his family.

"Well, I think we've had enough apologies, confessions, and introductions for one night. Let's go home," Harry sighed. Lily nodded and Ginny smiled up at her husband. It had been an eventful night and there was a lot to discuss in the morning, but it could wait. Ginny wrapped Albus into a hug, kissing him on the forehead.

"Dad, can we still have ice cream when we get home," Lily asked.

"Yes, Lils, we can still have ice cream," Harry chuckled. Harry led his family back to their room and checked them out. They apparated home and after ice cream, went to bed. Albus and James still hadn't said anything to each other, but it wasn't them ignoring each other. Albus knew his brother needed space and he gave it to him willingly. As Harry was falling asleep with Ginny in his arms, he couldn't help but admire how much Albus had grown up.

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**Thank you to everyone who has reviewed! :D I really appreciate it! I will try to take each Hogwarts year slowly and build up the friends relationship and the darkness that threatens their happiness (foreshadowing! lol) I hope you enjoyed this chapter, i've been thinking about it for a while! Tell me what you think and how i'm writing! Thank you again so much for reading this story! Thank you for the reviews! :D**


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